Enhanced automated control scheduling

ABSTRACT

In an embodiment, an electronic device may include storage containing processor-executable instructions, a preference function that maps weights indicating likely user preferences for the range of values of a device setting in relation to a range of values of a variable, and a current automated device control schedule configured to control the device setting of the electronic device in relation to the variable, and a processor. The instructions may cause the processor to determine the current automated device control schedule based on the preference function by detecting user behavior that indicates satisfaction or dissatisfaction with values of the device setting in relation to the variable, updating the preference function based on the detected user behavior, and determining the current automated device control schedule by comparing a number of candidate device control schedules against the weights of the preference function and selecting the candidate with the highest score.

BACKGROUND

This disclosure relates to controlling an electronic device bygenerating an automated schedule tailored to preferences revealed byuser behavior.

This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects ofart that may be related to various aspects of the present techniques,which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed tobe helpful in providing the reader with background information tofacilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the presentdisclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statementsare to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.

People interact with many electronic devices in their daily lives. Manyof these electronic devices are “smart” devices that can be controlledremotely or according to a schedule. Smart lighting, for example, may becontrolled to be raised or lowered to set an appropriate mood. Likewise,a smart thermostat may manage a thermal environment of a structure, suchas a residential or commercial building. A smart thermostat may decidehow to condition the structure properly, which may include varying aninternal temperature, humidity, and/or other environmentalcharacteristic based on a setpoint schedule and/or temperatures selectedby a person interacting with the thermostat.

Some smart devices may even learn from the way people control them. Forexample, some smart thermostats have applied an individualrules-and-exceptions-based learning approach to automatically generatetemperature setpoint schedules. The rules-and-exceptions-based learningapproach may involve observing interactions with the smart thermostatover time and, based on certain defined rules and exceptions, determinewhether the interactions have some meaning that should be used to builda temperature setpoint schedule. In one example, therules-and-exceptions-based learning approach may determine to include atemperature setpoint in a setpoint schedule when a person interacts withthe thermostat to consistently select a similar temperature for severaldays in a row, or for the same day of the week for several weeks in arow, at about the same time of day, but not when the person selects adifferent temperature at about that time of day during an interveningday. Because there are numerous possible scenarios that could explainwhether the person would want a temperature change to add or remove atemperature setpoint of an automated temperature setpoint schedule, therules-and-exceptions-based learning approach may include a large numberof rules and exceptions.

While a rules-and-exceptions-based learning approach may allow a smartdevice to generally learn what to do based on the person's interactionswith the smart device, this may not be the case if the interactionshappen not to match a defined rule or exception. As a result, therules-and-exceptions-based learning approach may sometimes produceerrant results. For instance, the rules-and-exceptions-based learningapproach may too heavily consider interactions that occur soon after thesmart device is installed, may produce setpoint schedules that areinefficient, or may change setpoints too often or too infrequently toeffectively account for occupant preferences.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Certain embodiments commensurate in scope with the originally claimedsubject matter are summarized below. These embodiments are not intendedto limit the scope of the claimed subject matter, but rather theseembodiments are intended only to provide a brief summary of possibleforms of the subject matter. Indeed, the subject matter may encompass avariety of forms that may be similar to or different from theembodiments set forth below.

To avoid pitfalls from the rules-and-exceptions-based learning approachmentioned above, an automated schedule to control an electronic devicemay be generated using a preference function. In this disclosure, apreference function represents a mapping of relative values—referred toherein as “weights” or “preference weights”—that indicate likelypreferences for or against certain device settings, in relation to oneor more variables. Various candidate automated device control schedulesmay be generated and tested against the preference function. Thecandidate schedule that best fits the preference function (and/or otherfactors, such as efficiency or wear and tear) may be used to control theelectronic device. In effect, this form of enhanced automated controldevice scheduling may adapt to peoples' lives, rather than forcingpeople to adapt to their devices.

Some examples discussed below include various systems, apparatus,methods, and related computer programs for controlling an environmentalcontrol system using a “smart” thermostat. The smart thermostat maylearn a person's temperature preferences by tracking the person'sbehavior. In one example, the thermostat may review the daily behaviorof occupants in a structure at the end of each day. The thermostat maygenerate or update a preference function based on that behavior, and usethe preference function to plan out an automated setpoint schedule—aschedule of temperature setpoints over time used to control the smartthermostat—for the next week. It should be appreciated, however, thatwhile many of the specific examples below relate to generating anautomated schedule for a smart thermostat, any suitable electronicdevices that can be controlled by an automated schedule may employ thesystems and methods of this disclosure. For instance, an automatedschedule for smart lighting may be generated using a preference functionthat weights preferences for lighting level against the time of day (oreven against other variables, such as content being displayed on atelevision or tablet device). Likewise, an automated schedule for avariable-height desk may be generated using a preference function thatweights preferences for desk height against time of day.

In the case of the smart thermostat, a preference function may describerelative preferences for particular temperature settings in relation tothe time of day. People may reveal their preferences for certaintemperatures at certain times of the day in a variety of ways, such asby not adjusting the temperature setting, which may indicatesatisfaction with that temperature setting; by adjusting the temperatureup or down, which may indicate dissatisfaction with the previoustemperature setting and satisfaction with the new temperature setting;by manually adding or deleting a temperature setpoint on a setpointschedule that controls the thermostat; or exhibiting discomfort such assweating, shivering, or fitful sleep. These behavioral indications ofpreferences for or against certain temperatures at different times ofday are meant to be exemplary and are not exhaustive. The behavior maybe used to build a preference function describing a relative preference(weight) in relation to temperatures over a time of day. In some cases,the preference function is a scalar function of two variables (e.g.,temperature setting and time of day), with a scalar value (weight)associated with coordinates of the variables (e.g., a particulartemperature at a particular time of day). For example, the preferencefunction may take the form, f(temperature, time-of-day)=weight,indicating relative preference for particular temperatures at particulartimes-of-day.

Building the preference function may involve adding or subtractingweights at and/or around (temperature, time-of-day) coordinates where aperson exhibited behavior indicating a preference for or a preferenceagainst particular temperatures at particular times of day. For example,if a person turned the thermostat dial from 66° F. to 75° F. at 6:00 AM,weight at a (66° F., 6:00 AM) coordinate of the preference function maybe reduced, while weight at a (75° F., 6:00 AM) coordinate of thepreference function may be increased. The preference function may alsobe smoothed by reducing slightly the weights around the (66° F., 6:00AM) coordinate of the preference function and by increasing slightly theweights around the (75° F., 6:00 AM) coordinate of the preferencefunction.

There may also be several kinds of separate preference functions thatare developed and maintained. The preference functions may include a daypreference function for each particular day (e.g., Monday, Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday). In some cases, theremay be different sets of preference functions maintained for eachparticular day for different modes of operation of the thermostat, suchas one set for cooling mode and one set for heating mode. Thesepreference functions may maintain preferences that have been revealed onthose particular days of the week, since people tend to have schedulesthat remain relatively constant week by week, and thus behaviorindicating their preferences may also be fairly consistent. The dailypreference functions may be updated each week at the end of the day. Forexample, a preference function for Monday may be updated at midnightgoing into Tuesday. However, before a daily preference function isupdated, the weights of the preference function may be reduced acrossthe board by some percentage or amount. This may be referred to asdecay. Periodically decaying the weights of the preference functionacross the board allows preferences stored by the preference function togradually recede over time, so that more recent behavior weighs moreheavily in the preference function than older behavior.

Using one or more of the preference functions, an automated setpointschedule can be generated. Setpoints may be defined by a temperature anda time. Candidate setpoint schedules may be generated that vary fromeach other slightly. These candidate setpoint schedules may be testedagainst the preference function(s). Candidate setpoint schedules thatbetter fit the weights of the preference function will have higherscores. The candidate setpoint schedule with the highest score, andtherefore likely best matches a person's revealed preferences, mayitself be used to generate several more candidate setpoint schedules,and these may also be tested against the preference function(s). Thisprocess may continue as long as desired, and the ultimate candidatesetpoint schedule with the highest score may be selected to control thethermostat.

In a first embodiment, an electronic device may include storagecontaining processor-executable instructions, a number of preferencefunctions, each of which maps weights indicating likely relative userpreferences for a range of possible setpoint temperatures for a range oftimes of day for a particular day of the week, and a current setpointschedule of temperature setpoints over time. The electronic device mayalso include a processor configured to execute the instructions. Theinstructions may be configured to cause the processor to control anenvironmental control system based at least in part on the currentsetpoint schedule, and to cause the processor to determine the currentsetpoint schedule by detecting user behavior occurring on a first day ofthe week that indicates satisfaction or dissatisfaction with setpointtemperatures of the environmental control system in relation to time ofday for the first day of the week, updating one of the number ofpreference functions that corresponds to the first day of the week basedat least in part on the detected user behavior, blending the weights ofthe preference function corresponding to the first day of the week withthe weights of other of the number of preference functions to obtain afirst composite preference function, and determining the currentsetpoint schedule at least partly by comparing a number of candidatesetpoint schedules against the weights of the first composite preferencefunction and selecting the candidate setpoint schedule that has ahighest score against the weights of the first composite preferencefunction or has a highest score after one or more scoring modifications,or both.

In a second embodiment, an electronic device may include storagecontaining processor-executable instructions, a preference function thatmaps weights indicating likely relative user preferences for a range ofpossible setpoint temperatures for a range of times of day, and acurrent setpoint schedule of temperature setpoints over time. Theelectronic device may also include a processor configured to execute theinstructions. The instructions may be configured to cause the processorto control an environmental control system based at least in part on thecurrent setpoint schedule, and to determine the current setpointschedule based on the preference function by detecting user behaviorthat indicates satisfaction or dissatisfaction with setpointtemperatures of the environmental control system in relation to time ofday, updating the preference function based on the detected userbehavior according to a first method for an initial period of timebeginning when the processor first determined the current setpointschedule based on the preference function, and according to a secondmethod for a subsequent period of time after the initial period of time,where the first method prioritizes new behavior over older behavior morethan the second method, determining the current setpoint schedule atleast partly by comparing a number of candidate setpoint schedulesagainst the weights of the preference function and selecting thecandidate setpoint schedule that has a highest score against the weightsof the preference function or has a highest score after one or morescoring modifications, or both.

In a third embodiment, a method may include using a first electronicdevice or a second electronic device to detect user behavior thatindicates satisfaction or dissatisfaction with device settings of thefirst electronic device having a range of possible values in relation toa variable, based at least in part on the detected user behavior, usingthe first electronic device or the second electronic device to determinea preference function that maps weights indicating likely userpreferences for the range of possible values of the device setting inrelation to a range of values of the variable, using the firstelectronic device or the second electronic device to generate a firstautomated device control schedule configured to control the firstelectronic device in relation to the variable by determining a number ofcandidate automated device control schedules, comparing each of thenumber of candidate automated device control schedules to the preferencefunction to obtain a first score, where the candidate automated devicecontrol schedule that best fits the weights of the preference functionhas the highest first score, modifying or not modifying the first scoreof each of the number of candidate automated device control schedules toobtain a second score, and selecting one of the number of candidateautomated device control schedules with the highest second score to bethe first automated device control schedule, and controlling the firstelectronic device according to the first automated device controlschedule.

In a fourth embodiment, an electronic device may include storagecontaining processor-executable instructions, a preference function thatmaps weights indicating likely user preferences for the range ofpossible values of a device setting in relation to a range of values ofa variable, and a current automated device control schedule configuredto control the device setting of the electronic device in relation tothe variable. The electronic device may also include a processorconfigured to execute the instructions. The instructions may beconfigured to cause the processor to determine the current automateddevice control schedule based on the preference function by detectinguser behavior that indicates satisfaction or dissatisfaction with one ormore values of the device setting in relation to the variable, updatingthe preference function based on the detected user behavior, anddetermining the current automated device control schedule at leastpartly by comparing a number of candidate device control schedulesagainst the weights of the preference function and selecting thecandidate automated device control schedule that has a highest scoreagainst the weights of the preference function or has a highest scoreafter one or more scoring modifications, or both.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentdisclosure will become better understood when the following detaileddescription is read with reference to the accompanying drawings, inwhich like characters represent like parts throughout the drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a device that may communicate withother devices disposed in a smart-home environment, in accordance withan embodiment;

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of a smart-home environment, inaccordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 3 illustrates a network-level view of an extensible devices andservices platform with which the smart-home environment of FIG. 2 can beintegrated, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 4 illustrates an abstracted functional view of the extensibledevices and services platform of FIG. 3, with reference to a processingengine as well as devices of the smart-home environment, in accordancewith an embodiment;

FIG. 5 illustrates a flow diagram of a process suitable to determine anautomated device control schedule that best fits a preference functionbased at least partly on user behavior, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic diagram of user behavior suggestive ofpreferences for temperature settings of a smart thermostat, inaccordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of a user changing a temperaturesetting of a thermostat by physically rotating the thermostat, inaccordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 8 illustrates a view of a user changing a temperature setting of athermostat via an application program that remotely controls thethermostat, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 9 illustrates a view of a user manually adjusting a setpointschedule used to control the thermostat via an application program thatremotely controls the thermostat, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 10 illustrates a preference function that may be developed based onthe user interactions of FIGS. 7-9, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 11 illustrates an automated device control schedule that best fitsthe preference function of FIG. 10, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 12 illustrates a tangible, non-transitory computer-readable mediumstoring cooling mode and heating mode preference functions for eachparticular day of the week, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 13 illustrates a flow diagram of a process for obtaining a weeklypreference function by updating a daily preference function based atleast partly on user behavior and compositing multiple preferencesincluding the daily preference function, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 14 illustrates an example setpoint schedule for a current day, inaccordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 15 illustrates an example of user behavior during the current dayrelating to temperature preferences, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 16 illustrates a daily preference function for the current day,which maps weights indicating user preferences for particulartemperatures at certain times of day, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 17 illustrates decaying aged weights in the daily preferencefunction to give more weight to more recent user behavior over time, inaccordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 18 illustrates adjusting weights for followed temperatures in thedaily preference, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 19 illustrates adjusting weights for changed setpoint temperaturesin the daily preference function, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 20 illustrates adjusting weights for manually added and deletedsetpoints in the daily preference function, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 21 illustrates adjusting weights for efficient temperatures in thedaily preference function, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 22 illustrates a graph including user interactions and anassociated preference function generated from the graph, in accordancewith an embodiment;

FIG. 23 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea composite preference function for Monday, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 24 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea composite preference function for Tuesday, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 25 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea composite preference function for Wednesday, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 26 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea composite preference function for Thursday, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 27 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea composite preference function for Friday, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 28 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea composite preference function for Saturday, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 29 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea composite preference function for Sunday, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 30 illustrates a set of composite preference functions for each dayof the week that make up a week composite preference function, inaccordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 31 illustrates a flow diagram of a process suitable for generatingand selecting a candidate setpoint schedule that optimizes a scoreoutput by being processed against preference function(s), in accordancewith an embodiment;

FIG. 32 illustrates a schematic diagram of constraints for generatingcandidate setpoint schedules, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 33 illustrates a schematic diagram of scoring modifications toincrease the likelihood of selecting a candidate setpoint schedule thatbest fits user preferences, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 34 illustrates a schematic diagram of a process for iterativelygenerating candidate setpoint schedules and calculating their scores, inaccordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 35 illustrates an example of an original setpoint schedule for anupcoming day, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 36 illustrates an example preference function used to processcandidate setpoint schedules generated based on the original setpointschedule of FIG. 35, in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 37 illustrates a simplification of the example preference functionincluding a matrix with mapped weights, against which a first candidatesetpoint schedule is processed to output a score, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 38 illustrates a simplification of the example preference functionincluding a matrix with mapped weights, against which a second candidatesetpoint schedule is processed to output a score, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 39 illustrates a simplification of the example preference functionincluding a matrix with mapped weights, against which a third candidatesetpoint schedule is processed to output a score, in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 40 illustrates a selected setpoint schedule generated for theforthcoming day based on the candidate setpoint schedule that generatedthe highest score (FIG. 39), in accordance with an embodiment; and

FIG. 41 illustrates an example showing the effect of including anefficiency bonus in a preference function, in accordance with anembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One or more specific embodiments of the present disclosure will bedescribed below. In an effort to provide a concise description of theseembodiments, all features of an actual implementation may not bedescribed in the specification. It should be appreciated that in thedevelopment of any such actual implementation, as in any engineering ordesign project, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be madeto achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance withsystem-related and business-related constraints, which may vary from oneimplementation to another. Moreover, it should be appreciated that sucha development effort might be complex and time consuming, but wouldnevertheless be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, andmanufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of thisdisclosure.

When introducing elements of various embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the articles “a,” “an,” “the,” and “said” are intended tomean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms “comprising,”“including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean thatthere may be additional elements other than the listed elements. In thisdisclosure, the term “smart home environments” may refer to smartenvironments or smart networks for any building type, such assingle-family houses, duplexes, townhomes, multi-unit apartmentbuildings, hotels, retail stores, office buildings, industrialbuildings, and any building that may include one or more smart devices.

This disclosure relates to systems, methods, and devices to generateautomatic control schedules for a smart device using a preferencefunction that relates a relative preference—referred to herein as“weight” or “preference weight”—for certain device settings (e.g.,particular temperature settings) in relation to one or more variables(e.g., the time of day or the day of the week). Various candidateautomated device control schedules may be generated and tested againstthe preference function. The candidate schedule that best fits thepreference function (and/or other factors, such as efficiency or wearand tear) may be used to control the electronic device.

As will be discussed further below, a “smart” thermostat represents onetype of electronic device that may be controlled according to anautomated device schedule generated based on such a preference function.In some examples discussed below, the smart thermostat may learn aperson's temperature preferences by tracking the person's behavior andidentifying whether the behavior indicates satisfaction ordissatisfaction with particular temperatures at particular times of day.Tracking the person's behavior may take place using the thermostat orusing other smart devices of a smart home environment. For instance, thethermostat may record physical interactions (or the lack thereof) orremote interactions (or the lack thereof) via an application programrunning on a personal device (e.g., a smartphone) that is incommunication with the thermostat or with an online service associatedwith the thermostat. Additionally or alternatively, the online serviceor other devices in the smart home environment may record such behavior.For example, a camera system may identify when a person is exhibitingapparent discomfort with the current temperature setting by sweating,shivering, or sleeping fitfully.

By identifying user behavior that indicates satisfaction ordissatisfaction with particular device settings (e.g., temperature) inrelation to one or more variables (e.g., time of day), a preferencefunction based on that behavior may be generated. The preferencefunction may be used to plan out an automated device control schedule.In the case of smart lighting, the automated device control schedule maybe a lighting schedule that controls lighting levels in relation to timeof day or other factors, such as content being displayed on a televisionor tablet device. In the case of a variable-height desk, the automateddevice control schedule may control a height of the desk in relation totime of day. Indeed, any suitable control schedule for any suitableelectronic device that can be controlled automatically according to sucha schedule may be generated based on a corresponding preference functionas taught by this disclosure. In effect, this enhanced automated controlscheduling provides a holistic view of user behavior upon which togenerate an automated control schedule.

The subject of most examples in this disclosure is that of a smartthermostat. A smart thermostat may control an environmental controlsystem that may include a heater, an air conditioner, a heating,ventilation and/or air conditioning (HVAC) system, or the like. Itshould be appreciated that, while an HVAC system is discussed by way ofexample in this disclosure, the disclosed systems, apparatus, methods,and related computer programs may involve any suitable environmentalcontrol system that can adjust the temperature of a structure (e.g., anenvironmental control system that automatically opens windows or ventsto raise or lower the temperature in the structure, or a system thatcools only or heats only). Based on user behavior indicative ofsatisfaction or dissatisfaction with temperature settings of athermostat over the times of day, a preference function that relatesuser preferences for specific temperatures at specific times of day maybe developed. The preference function may be adjusted to account forother factors, such as efficiency.

In addition to considering active interactions, lack of interactions(indicating satisfaction with the current temperature) may be consideredas well. Indeed, people may reveal their preferences for certaintemperatures at certain times of the day in a variety of ways, such asby not adjusting the temperature setting, which may indicatesatisfaction with that temperature setting; by adjusting the temperatureup or down, which may indicate dissatisfaction with the previoustemperature setting and satisfaction with the new temperature setting;by manually adding or deleting a temperature setpoint on a setpointschedule that controls the thermostat; or exhibiting discomfort such assweating, shivering, or fitful sleep. These behavioral indications ofpreferences for or against certain temperatures at different times ofday are meant to be exemplary and are not exhaustive. Taking such userbehavior into account to build a preference function may be understoodto provide a holistic view of user preferences. By taking the history ofthe user's behavior into account, the enhanced automated controlscheduling may more accurately translate consistent and intentionaltemperature changes over a period of time into learned setpoints. Aswill be discussed further below, the resulting preference functions thatare built based on the user behavior may be maintained and adjustedbased on new user behavior.

The tracked user behavior may be used to build a preference functiondescribing a relative preference (weight) in relation to temperaturesover a time of day. In some cases, the preference function is a scalarfunction of two variables (e.g., temperature setting and time of day),with a scalar value (weight) associated with coordinates of thevariables (e.g., a particular temperature at a particular time of day).For example, the preference function may take the form, f(temperature,time-of-day)=weight, indicating relative preference for particulartemperatures at particular times-of-day. Indeed, the preferencefunctions may be mathematical function with one or more variables, orthe preference functions may utilize a multi-dimensional array. Forexample, as previously noted, the preference functions may becharacterized as a scalar function including two variables, time-of-dayand temperature, and a scalar including a range of suitable weights thatindicate relative user preferences for particular temperatures atparticular times. The preference functions may be decayed over time,essentially giving more weight to newer behavior than older behavior.The preference functions may be understood to be empirical in the sensethat they are based on observation of user behavior.

A preference function or a combination of preference functions may beused to generate an automated setpoint schedule—a schedule oftemperature setpoints over time used to control the smart thermostat—forsome period in the future (e.g., for the next day, the next few days,the next week, the next few weeks, or the next month). To do so, severalcandidate setpoint schedules may be generated and scored against apreference function. The scoring process may involve comparing thecandidate setpoint schedule to the preference function and to obtain ascore relating to the weights of the preference function. In some cases,the score may represent a summation of all the weights assigned at thesetpoint temperatures in the candidate setpoint schedule at eachsetpoint time over the duration of time (and/or certain scoremodifications to account for system wear and/tear or other factors). Theprocess may take place iteratively by generating a few candidatesetpoint schedules by varying a previous candidate setpoint schedule,scoring the candidate setpoint schedules against the preferencefunction, and selecting the highest scoring candidate setpoint togenerate new candidate setpoint schedules in a next iteration. This maycontinue until there are no more variations of candidate setpointschedules that increase the score or until time runs out. Thehighest-scoring candidate setpoint schedule may be selected to controlthe thermostat for the next week.

In some embodiments, as described in detail below, composite preferencefunctions may be obtained for each particular day of the week byblending percentages of the particular day preference function with aday type preference function for weekdays or the weekend, a weekpreference function, or some combination thereof. The day typepreference function for weekdays may be obtained by averaging the daypreference functions of the weekdays together, the day type preferencefunction for the weekend may be obtained by averaging the day preferencefunctions for Saturday and Sunday together, and the week preferencefunction may be obtained by averaging the day preference functions foreach day of the week together. In some embodiments, a week compositepreference function may be made up of each of the individual compositepreference functions for each day and the week composite preferencefunction is the function that candidate setpoint schedules are processedagainst during optimization to select the candidate setpoint schedule toapply for a forthcoming week.

This essentially holistic enhanced automated control scheduling mayprovide increased efficiency while respecting user inputs andmaintaining comfort, and improved responsiveness of schedule learning ascompared to a rules-and-exceptions-based approach. Indeed, the enhancedautomated control scheduling may reduce energy consumption by runningthe HVAC system more efficiently (e.g., fewer setpoints, more efficientsetpoint temperatures at certain times). Indeed, in some embodiments,the enhanced automated control scheduling may save users 6.1% in coolingand 5.6% in heating as compared to a rules-and-exceptions-basedapproach. While the enhanced automated control scheduling may selectmore efficient setpoints in some scenarios to obtain higher savings, thesavings is not forced on the user. If the user prefers more comfortabletemperatures and adjusts the thermostat accordingly, the enhancedautomated control scheduling of this disclosure does not resist.However, if the user does make temperature changes to more efficienttemperatures, the enhanced automated control scheduling may pay moreattention to these changes.

Further, uniformity of setpoints may be encouraged across eachindividual day (e.g., Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays,Saturdays, Sundays) and day type (e.g., weekday or weekend) by reducingscores of candidate setpoint schedules due to excessive setpoints and/orirregular setpoints. The user's different temperature preferences may betracked on weekdays versus weekends. That is, the user may prefer theambient temperature of his/her home to be cool (72° F.) all day on theweekend, whereas the user prefers the ambient temperature to be warmer(80° F.) during the day during the week when the user is away at work toreduce electricity usage. Also, the user may have different temperaturepreferences for Monday through Friday, and the disclosure may enabledetermining those preferences and providing an enhanced automatedsetpoint schedule accordingly.

As may be appreciated, a selected candidate setpoint schedule mayinclude learned setpoints (e.g., setpoints added by the methods) andmanually added setpoints (e.g., setpoints added by the user). Over time,the setpoints may be changed to different setpoint times, removedaltogether to shrink the setpoint schedule, or remain the same. In anyscenario, the enhanced automated control scheduling may enable providingindividualized automated setpoint schedules that more accurately reflectthe user's temperature preferences and that may improve efficiency ofthe environmental control system, thereby potentially saving the usermoney and increasing the life of the environmental control system.Further, the selected setpoint schedules may be adapted to the user'stemperature preferences, and with a better adapted schedule, users areable to maintain their preferred temperatures with fewer dial turns andschedule edits.

Smart-Home Network

With the foregoing in mind, FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a device 10that may communicate with other like devices within a smart-homeenvironment. In one embodiment, the device 10 may include one or moresensors 12, a user-interface component 14, a power supply 16 (e.g.,including a power connection and/or battery), a network interface 18(e.g., including a radio A 20, a radio B 22, a wired component 24, and acellular component 26), a memory 27, a processor 28, a speaker 29, andthe like. Particular sensors 12, user-interface components 14, andpower-supply configurations may be the same or similar with each devices10. However, it should be noted that in some embodiments, each device 10may include particular sensors 12, user-interface components 14,power-supply configurations, and the like based on a device type ormodel.

The sensors 12, in certain embodiments, may detect various propertiessuch as acceleration, temperature, humidity, water, supplied power,proximity, external motion, device motion, sound signals, ultrasoundsignals, light signals, fire, smoke, carbon monoxide,global-positioning-satellite (GPS) signals, radio-frequency (RF), otherelectromagnetic signals or fields, or the like. As such, the sensors 12may include temperature sensor(s), humidity sensor(s), hazard-relatedsensor(s) or other environmental sensor(s), accelerometer(s),microphone(s), optical sensors up to and including camera(s) (e.g.,charged coupled-device or video cameras), active or passive radiationsensors, GPS receiver(s) or radiofrequency identification detector(s).While FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment with a single sensor 12, manyembodiments may include multiple sensors 12. In some instances, thedevice 10 may include one or more primary sensors 12 and one or moresecondary sensors 12. Here, the primary sensor(s) 12 may sense datacentral to the core operation of the device (e.g., sensing a temperaturein a thermostat or sensing smoke in a smoke detector), while thesecondary sensor(s) 12 may sense other types of data (e.g., motion,light or sound), which can be used for energy-efficiency objectives orsmart-operation objectives.

One or more user-interface components 14 in the device 10 may receiveinput from the user and/or present information to the user. The receivedinput may be used to determine a setting. In certain embodiments, theuser-interface components 14 may include a mechanical or virtualcomponent that responds to the user's motion. For example, the user canmechanically move a sliding component (e.g., along a vertical orhorizontal track) or rotate a rotatable ring (e.g., along a circulartrack), or the user's motion along a touchpad may be detected. Suchmotions may correspond to a setting adjustment, which can be determinedbased on an absolute position of a user-interface component 14 or basedon a displacement of a user-interface component 14 (e.g., adjusting aset point temperature by 1 degree F. for every 10° rotation of arotatable-ring component). Physically and virtually movableuser-interface components 14 can allow a user to set a setting along aportion of an apparent continuum. Thus, the user may not be confined tochoose between two discrete options (e.g., as would be the case if upand down buttons were used) but can quickly and intuitively define asetting along a range of possible setting values. For example, amagnitude of a movement of a user-interface component 14 may beassociated with a magnitude of a setting adjustment, such that a usermay dramatically alter a setting with a large movement or finely tune asetting with a small movement.

The user-interface components 14 may also include one or more buttons(e.g., up and down buttons), a keypad, a number pad, a switch, amicrophone, and/or a camera (e.g., to detect gestures). In oneembodiment, the user-interface component 14 may include aclick-and-rotate annular ring component that may enable the user tointeract with the component by rotating the ring (e.g., to adjust asetting) and/or by clicking the ring inwards (e.g., to select anadjusted setting or to select an option). In another embodiment, theuser-interface component 14 may include a camera that may detectgestures (e.g., to indicate that a power or alarm state of a device isto be changed). In some instances, the device 10 may have one primaryinput component, which may be used to set a plurality of types ofsettings. The user-interface components 14 may also be configured topresent information to a user via, e.g., a visual display (e.g., athin-film-transistor display or organic light-emitting-diode display)and/or the audio speaker 29.

The power-supply component 16 may include a power connection and/or alocal battery. For example, the power connection may connect the device10 to a power source such as a line voltage source. In some instances,an AC power source can be used to repeatedly charge a (e.g.,rechargeable) local battery, such that the battery may be used later tosupply power to the device 10 when the AC power source is not available.

The network interface 18 may include a component that enables the device10 to communicate between devices 10 or to an online service (e.g., theNest® service) via the Internet. In one embodiment, the networkinterface 18 may communicate using a standard network protocol, such asBluetooth® Low Energy (BLE), Dust Networks®, Z-Wave®, WiFi, and ZigBee®.Additionally or alternatively, the network interface 18 may communicatevia an efficient network layer protocol (e.g., Thread™). For example,the efficient network layer protocol may enable the device 10 towirelessly communicate IPv6-type data or traffic using a RIPng routingmechanism and a DTLS security scheme. To communicate wirelessly on thenetwork, the network interface 18 may include a wireless card (e.g., SIMcard) or some other transceiver connection. Further, in some examples,the network interface 18 may include two radios: represented in FIG. 1as radio A 20 and radio B 22. These radios 20 and 22 may send and/orreceive heartbeat signals over a shared or overlapping spectrum usableto both of the radios 20 and 22. For example, the radio A 20 may be aWiFi radio and the radio B 22 may be a Bluetooth® Low Energy radio.Additionally or alternatively, the radios 20 or 22 may be any othersuitable radio circuitry. The radios 20 and 22 may use certainoverlapping spectrum such that one can detect signals from the other. Insome embodiments, when one of the radios 20 or 22 fails to receive aheartbeat signal from the other, the device 10 may leverage a cellularcomponent 26 (e.g., 3G, 4G, or LTE circuitry) to communicate withdevices outside of the local network. The network interface 18 may alsoinclude a wired component 24, in certain embodiments. The wiredcomponent 24 may enable wired communication (e.g., Ethernetcommunication) with other devices 10.

The memory 27 may be any suitable article of manufacture that can serveas media to store processor-executable code, data, or the like. Thesearticles of manufacture may represent tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media (e.g., any suitable form of memory or storage)that may store the processor-executable code used by the processor 28 toperform the presently disclosed methods. Also, the memory 27 may be usedto store certain data, such as one or more preference functionsincluding past weights assigned, candidate setpoint schedules, and soforth. Additionally, the memory 27 may be used to store parameters usedby the disclosed methods to generate the preference function, such asweight decay value, weight of changing the schedule, weight added forfollowing a target temperature, weight added for temperature dialchanged to, weight subtracted for temperature dial changed from, weightadded for a manually added setpoint, weight subtracted for a manuallydeleted setpoint, weight to add when burning in current schedule, weightsubtracted for setpoints after certain time, percentage of compositepreference function that comes from day preference function, percentageof composite preference function that comes from day type preferencefunction, percentage of composite preference function that comes fromweek preference function, percentage, among others.

The processor 28 may support one or more of a variety of differentdevice 10 functionalities. As such, the processor 28 may include one ormore processors 28 configured and programmed to carry out and/or causeto be carried out one or more of the functionalities described herein.In one embodiment, the processor 28 may include general-purposeprocessors 28 carrying out computer code stored in memory 27 (e.g.,flash memory, hard drive, random access memory), special-purposeprocessors or application-specific integrated circuits, combinationsthereof, and/or using other types of hardware/firmware/softwareprocessing platforms. Further, the processor 28 may be implemented aslocalized versions or counterparts of algorithms carried out or governedremotely by central servers or cloud-based systems, such as by virtue ofrunning a Java virtual machine (JVM) that executes instructions providedfrom a cloud server using Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX) orsimilar protocols. By way of example, the processor 28 may detect when alocation (e.g., a house or room) is occupied, up to and includingwhether it is occupied by a specific person or is occupied by a specificnumber of people (e.g., relative to one or more thresholds). In oneembodiment, this detection can occur, e.g., by analyzing microphonesignals, detecting user movements (e.g., in front of a device),detecting openings and closings of doors or garage doors, detectingwireless signals, detecting an IP address of a received signal,detecting operation of one or more devices within a time window, or thelike. Moreover, the processor 28 may include image recognitiontechnology to identify particular occupants or objects.

In certain embodiments, the processor 28 may also include a high-powerprocessor and a low-power processor. The high-power processor mayexecute computationally intensive operations such as operating theuser-interface component 14, and the like. The low-power processor, onthe other hand, may manage less complex processes. In some embodiments,the low-power processor may detect a hazard or temperature from thesensor 12. In one embodiment, the low-power processor may wake orinitialize the high-power processor for computationally intensiveprocesses. That is, the low-power processor may function as a watchdogfor certain conditions during times where the high-power processor isdeactivated or sleeping. The conditions may include a desiredtemperature being reached, a certain amount of time elapsing, an eventoccurring that requires the high-power processor's attention, or thelike.

In some instances, the processor 28 may predict desirable settingsand/or implement those settings. For example, based on the presencedetection, the processor 28 may adjust device settings to, e.g.,conserve power when nobody is home or in a particular room or to accordwith user preferences (e.g., general at-home preferences oruser-specific preferences). As another example, based on the detectionof a particular person, animal or object (e.g., a child, pet or lostobject), the processor 28 may initiate an audio or visual indicator ofwhere the person, animal or object is or may initiate an alarm orsecurity feature if an unrecognized person is detected under certainconditions (e.g., at night or when lights are off).

In some embodiments, devices 10 may interact with each other such thatevents detected by a first device 10 influences actions of a seconddevice 10. For example, a first device 10 can detect that a user haspulled into a garage (e.g., by detecting motion in the garage, detectinga change in light in the garage or detecting opening of the garagedoor). The first device 10 can transmit this information to a seconddevice 10 via the efficient network layer, such that the second device10 can, e.g., adjust a home temperature setting, a light setting, amusic setting, and/or a security-alarm setting. As another example, afirst device 10 can detect a user approaching a front door (e.g., bydetecting motion or sudden light pattern changes). The first device 10may, e.g., cause a general audio or visual signal to be presented (e.g.,such as sounding of a doorbell) or cause a location-specific audio orvisual signal to be presented (e.g., to announce the visitor's presencewithin a room that a user is occupying).

By way of example, the device 10 may include a thermostat such as aNest® Learning Thermostat. Here, the thermostat may include sensors 12such as temperature sensors, humidity sensors, and the like such thatthe thermostat may determine present climate conditions within abuilding where the thermostat is disposed. The power-supply component 16for the thermostat may be a local battery such that the thermostat maybe placed anywhere in the building without regard to being placed inclose proximity to a continuous power source. Since the thermostat maybe powered using a local battery, the thermostat may minimize its energyuse such that the battery is rarely replaced.

In one embodiment, the thermostat may include a circular track that mayhave a rotatable ring disposed thereon as the user-interface component14. As such, a user may interact with or program the thermostat usingthe rotatable ring such that the thermostat controls the temperature ofthe building by controlling the HVAC system/unit, or the like. In someinstances, the thermostat may determine when the building may be vacantbased on its programming. For instance, if the thermostat is programmedto keep the HVAC unit powered off for an extended period of time, thethermostat may determine that the building will be vacant during thisperiod of time. Here, the thermostat may be programmed to turn off wallswitches (e.g., light switch) or other electronic devices 10 when itdetermines that the building is vacant. As such, the thermostat may usethe network interface 18 to communicate with a wall switch device 10such that it may send a signal to the wall switch device 10 when thebuilding is determined to be vacant. In this manner, the thermostat mayefficiently manage the energy use of the building.

It should be understood that the device 10 may include all of thecomponents illustrated (e.g., sensor 12, user interface 14, power supply16, network interface 18, memory 27, processor 28, speaker 29), a subsetof those components, or additional components. For example, some devices10 may not include a speaker 29, some devices' network interfaces 18 maynot include a cellular component 26, some devices' network interfaces 18may include only one radio or may include more than two radios, and soforth.

An example of a smart-home environment 30 within which one or more ofthe devices 10 of FIG. 1, methods, systems, services, and/or computerprogram products described further herein can be applicable isillustrated in FIG. 2. The depicted smart-home environment 30 includes astructure 32, which can include, e.g., a house, office building, garage,or mobile home. It will be appreciated that devices can also beintegrated into a smart-home environment 30 that does not include anentire structure 32, such as an apartment, condominium, or office space.Further, the smart home environment 30 can control and/or be coupled todevices 10 outside of the actual structure 32. Indeed, several devices10 in the smart home environment 30 need not physically be within thestructure 32 at all. For example, a device 10 controlling a pool heateror irrigation system can be located outside of the structure 32.

The depicted structure 32 includes a plurality of rooms 38, separated atleast partly from each other via walls 40. The walls 40 can includeinterior walls or exterior walls. Each room can further include a floor42 and a ceiling 44. Devices 10 can be mounted on, integrated withand/or supported by a wall 40, floor 42, or ceiling 44.

In some embodiments, the smart-home environment 30 of FIG. 2 includes aplurality of devices 10, including intelligent, multi-sensing,network-connected devices, that can integrate seamlessly with each otherand/or with a central server or a cloud-computing system to provide anyof a variety of useful smart-home objectives. The smart-home environment30 may include one or more intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connectedthermostats 46 (hereinafter referred to as “smart thermostats 46”), oneor more intelligent, network-connected, multi-sensing hazard detectionunits 50 (hereinafter referred to as “smart hazard detectors 50”), oneor more intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected entryway interfacedevices 52 (hereinafter referred to as “smart doorbells 52”), and one ormore intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected video cameras 53(hereinafter referred to as “smart video cameras 53”). According toembodiments, the smart thermostat 46 may include a Nest® LearningThermostat—1st Generation T100577 or Nest® Learning Thermostat—2ndGeneration T200577 by Nest Labs, Inc., among others. The smartthermostat 46 detects ambient climate characteristics (e.g., temperatureand/or humidity) and controls a HVAC system 48 accordingly. The smarthazard detector 50 may detect the presence of a hazardous substance or asubstance indicative of a hazardous substance (e.g., smoke, fire, orcarbon monoxide). The smart doorbell 52 may detect a person's approachto or departure from a location (e.g., an outer door), control doorbellfunctionality, announce a person's approach or departure via audio orvisual means, or control settings on a security system (e.g., toactivate or deactivate the security system when occupants go and come).

The smart video camera 53 may be located inside or outside of thestructure 32, as depicted. In some embodiments, the smart video camera53 may be a Nest® Dropcam®. The smart video camera 53 may be wireless(e.g., WiFi) and/or wired and configured to communicate with one or moredevices 10 in the smart home environment 30. Also, the smart videocamera 53 may be configured to buffer video and record and send video touser devices 66 via the Internet and/or Nest® cloud service 64.Additionally, a software application may be installed on user devices 66that is configured to access a live feed of the smart video camera 53 sothat a user may view current footage. The smart video camera 53 mayinclude a microphone and a speaker in order to enable two-way talkbetween the camera 53 and a user of the application. Further, the smartvideo camera 53 may be battery-powered or hard-wired and includeinfrared LEDs that enable night-vision. In addition, the smart videocamera 53 may be configured to provide alerts to a subscribed orinterested user of newly recorded available footage (e.g., configurabledetected activities). For example, an outdoor smart video camera 53 maycommunicate with the smart doorbell 52 so that any time the doorbell 52is rung and the user is not home, the camera 53 may send the video dataa configurable amount of time before the doorbell 52 was rung and aconfigurable amount of time after the doorbell was rung 52 to the user.In this way, the user may determine who visited the home while they areaway. In addition, the smart video camera 53 may begin recording footageany time movement occurs in a desired location of a field of view (e.g.,if a person traverses a doorway in a room, the smart video camera 53 maybegin recording for a set period of time).

In some embodiments, the smart-home environment 30 of FIG. 2 furtherincludes one or more intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected wallswitches 54 (hereinafter referred to as “smart wall switches 54”), alongwith one or more intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected wall pluginterfaces 56 (hereinafter referred to as “smart wall plugs 56”). Thesmart wall switches 54 may detect ambient lighting conditions, detectroom-occupancy states, and control a power and/or dim state of one ormore lights. In some instances, smart wall switches 54 may also controla power state or speed of a fan, such as a ceiling fan. The smart wallplugs 56 may detect occupancy of a room or enclosure and control supplyof power to one or more wall plugs (e.g., such that power is notsupplied to the plug if nobody is at home).

Still further, in some embodiments, the device 10 within the smart-homeenvironment 30 may further include a plurality of intelligent,multi-sensing, network-connected appliances 58 (hereinafter referred toas “smart appliances 58”), such as refrigerators, stoves and/or ovens,televisions, washers, dryers, lights, stereos, intercom systems,garage-door openers, floor fans, ceiling fans, wall air conditioners,pool heaters, irrigation systems, security systems, and so forth.According to embodiments, the network-connected appliances 58 are madecompatible with the smart-home environment 30 by cooperating with therespective manufacturers of the appliances. For example, the appliances58 can be space heaters, window AC units, motorized duct vents, etc.When plugged in, an appliance 58 can announce itself to the smart-homenetwork, such as by indicating what type of appliance 58 it is, and itcan automatically integrate with the controls of the smart-home. Suchcommunication by the appliance 58 to the smart home can be facilitatedby any wired or wireless communication protocols known by those havingordinary skill in the art. The smart home also can include a variety ofnon-communicating legacy appliances 68, such as old conventionalwasher/dryers, refrigerators, and the like which can be controlled,albeit coarsely (ON/OFF), by virtue of the smart wall plugs 56. Thesmart-home environment 30 can further include a variety of partiallycommunicating legacy appliances 70, such as infrared (“IR”) controlledwall air conditioners or other IR-controlled devices, which can becontrolled by IR signals provided by the smart hazard detectors 50 orthe smart wall switches 54.

According to embodiments, the smart thermostats 46, the smart hazarddetectors 50, the smart doorbells 52, the smart wall switches 54, thesmart wall plugs 56, and other devices of the smart-home environment 30are modular and can be incorporated into older and newer houses. Forexample, the devices 10 are designed around a modular platformconsisting of two basic components: a head unit and a back plate, whichis also referred to as a docking station. Multiple configurations of thedocking station are provided so as to be compatible with any home, suchas older and newer homes. However, all of the docking stations include astandard head-connection arrangement, such that any head unit can beremovably attached to any docking station. Thus, in some embodiments,the docking stations are interfaces that serve as physical connectionsto the structure and the voltage wiring of the homes, and theinterchangeable head units contain all of the sensors 12, processors 28,user interfaces 14, the power supply 16, the network interface 18, andother functional components of the devices 10 described above.

Many different commercial and functional possibilities for provisioning,maintenance, and upgrade are possible. For example, after years of usingany particular head unit, a user will be able to buy a new version ofthe head unit and simply plug it into the old docking station. There arealso many different versions for the head units, such as low-costversions with few features, and then a progression ofincreasingly-capable versions, up to and including extremely fancy headunits with a large number of features. Thus, it should be appreciatedthat the various versions of the head units can all be interchangeable,with any of them working when placed into any docking station. This canadvantageously encourage sharing and re-deployment of old head units—forexample, when an important high-capability head unit, such as a hazarddetector, is replaced by a new version of the head unit, then the oldhead unit can be re-deployed to a backroom or basement, etc. Accordingto embodiments, when first plugged into a docking station, the head unitcan ask the user (by 2D LCD display, 2D/3D holographic projection, voiceinteraction, etc.) a few simple questions such as, “Where am I” and theuser can indicate “living room”, “kitchen” and so forth.

The smart-home environment 30 may also include communication withdevices 10 outside of the physical home but within a proximategeographical range of the home. For example, the smart-home environment30 may include a pool heater monitor 34 that communicates a current pooltemperature to other devices 10 within the smart-home environment 30 orreceives commands for controlling the pool temperature. Similarly, thesmart-home environment 30 may include an irrigation monitor 36 thatcommunicates information regarding irrigation systems within thesmart-home environment 30 and/or receives control information forcontrolling such irrigation systems. According to embodiments, analgorithm is provided for considering the geographic location of thesmart-home environment 30, such as based on the zip code or geographiccoordinates of the home. The geographic information is then used toobtain data helpful for determining optimal times for watering, suchdata may include sun location information, temperature, dewpoint, soiltype of the land on which the home is located, etc.

By virtue of network connectivity, one or more of the smart-home devices10 of FIG. 2 can further allow a user to interact with the device 10even if the user is not proximate to the device 10. For example, a usercan communicate with a device 10 using a computer (e.g., a desktopcomputer, laptop computer, or tablet) or other portable electronicdevice (e.g., a smartphone) 66. A webpage or app can be configured toreceive communications from the user and control the device 10 based onthe communications and/or to present information about the device'soperation to the user. For example, the user can view a current setpointtemperature for a device 10 and adjust it using a computer or portableelectronic device 66. The user can be in the structure 32 during thisremote communication or outside the structure 32. The changes tosetpoints, either via the device 10 or portable electronic device 66,may be recorded and used when determining the optimal setpoint scheduleto apply for a forthcoming period of time.

As discussed, users can control the smart thermostat 46 and other smartdevices 10 in the smart-home environment 30 using a network-connectedcomputer or portable electronic device 66. In some examples, some or allof the occupants (e.g., individuals who live in the home) can registertheir device 66 with the smart-home environment 30. Such registrationcan be made at a central server to authenticate the occupant and/or thedevice 66 as being associated with the home and to give permission tothe occupant to use the device 66 to control the smart devices 10 in thehome. An occupant can use their registered device 66 to remotely controlthe smart devices 10 of the home, such as when the occupant is at workor on vacation. The occupant may also use their registered device 66 tocontrol the smart devices 10 when the occupant is actually locatedinside the home, such as when the occupant is sitting on a couch insidethe home. It should be appreciated that instead of or in addition toregistering devices 66, the smart-home environment 30 makes inferencesabout which individuals live in the home and are therefore occupants andwhich devices 66 are associated with those individuals. As such, thesmart-home environment 30 “learns” who is an occupant and permits thedevices 66 associated with those individuals to control the smartdevices 10 of the home.

In some instances, guests desire to control the smart devices. Forexample, the smart-home environment may receive communication from anunregistered mobile device of an individual inside of the home, wheresaid individual is not recognized as an occupant of the home. Further,for example, a smart-home environment may receive communication from amobile device of an individual who is known to be or who is registeredas a guest.

According to embodiments, a guest-layer of controls can be provided toguests of the smart-home environment 30. The guest-layer of controlsgives guests access to basic controls (e.g., a judicially selectedsubset of features of the smart devices 10), such as temperatureadjustments, but it locks out other functionalities. The guest layer ofcontrols can be thought of as a “safe sandbox” in which guests havelimited controls, but they do not have access to more advanced controlsthat could fundamentally alter, undermine, damage, or otherwise impairthe occupant-desired operation of the smart devices 10. For example, theguest layer of controls will not permit the guest to adjust theheat-pump lockout temperature.

A use case example of this is when a guest is in a smart home, the guestcould walk up to the thermostat 46 and turn the dial manually, but theguest may not want to walk around the house “hunting” for the thermostat46, especially at night while the home is dark and others are sleeping.Further, the guest may not want to go through the hassle of downloadingthe necessary application to their device for remotely controlling thethermostat 46. In fact, the guest may not have the home owner's logincredentials, etc., and therefore cannot remotely control the thermostat46 via such an application. Accordingly, according to embodiments of thepresent disclosure, the guest can open a mobile browser on their mobiledevice, type a keyword, such as “NEST” into the URL field and tap “Go”or “Search”, etc. In response, the device presents the guest with a userinterface which allows the guest to move the target temperature betweena limited range, such as 65 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. As discussed, theuser interface provides a guest layer of controls that are limited tobasic functions. The guest cannot change the target humidity, modes, orview energy history.

According to embodiments, to enable guests to access the user interfacethat provides the guest layer of controls, a local webserver is providedthat is accessible in the local area network (LAN). It does not requirea password, because physical presence inside the home is establishedreliably enough by the guest's presence on the LAN. In some embodiments,during installation of the smart device 10, such as the smart thermostat46, the home owner is asked if they want to enable a Local Web App (LWA)on the smart device 10. Business owners will likely say no; home ownerswill likely say yes. When the LWA option is selected, the smart device10 broadcasts to the LAN that the above referenced keyword, such as“NEST”, is now a host alias for its local web server. Thus, no matterwhose home a guest goes to, that same keyword (e.g., “NEST”) is alwaysthe URL you use to access the LWA, provided the smart device 10 ispurchased from the same manufacturer. Further, according to embodiments,if there is more than one smart device 10 on the LAN, the second andsubsequent smart devices 10 do not offer to set up another LWA. Instead,they register themselves as target candidates with the master LWA. Andin this case the LWA user would be asked which smart device 10 they wantto change the temperature on before getting the simplified userinterface for the particular smart device 10 they choose.

According to embodiments, a guest layer of controls may also be providedto users by means other than a device 66. For example, the smart device10, such as the smart thermostat 46, may be equipped withwalkup-identification technology (e.g., face recognition, RFID,ultrasonic sensors) that “fingerprints” or creates a “signature” for theoccupants of the home. The walkup-identification technology can be thesame as or similar to the fingerprinting and signature creatingtechniques described in other sections of this application. Inoperation, when a person who does not live in the home or is otherwisenot registered with the smart home or whose fingerprint or signature isnot recognized by the smart home “walks up” to a smart device 10, thesmart device 10 provides the guest with the guest layer of controls,rather than full controls.

As described below, the smart thermostat 46 and other smart devices 10“learn” by observing occupant behavior. For example, the smartthermostat 46 learns occupants' preferred temperature set-points formornings and evenings, and it learns when the occupants are asleep orawake, as well as when the occupants are typically away or at home, forexample. According to embodiments, when a guest controls the smartdevices 10, such as the smart thermostat 46, the smart devices 10 do not“learn” from the guest. This prevents the guest's adjustments andcontrols from affecting the learned preferences of the occupants. Thesmart thermostat 46 may learn the user's temperature preferences fordifferent days of the week and different day types (e.g., weekday orweekend).

According to some embodiments, a smart television remote control 67 isprovided. The smart remote control 67 recognizes occupants bythumbprint, visual identification, RFID, etc., and it recognizes a useras a guest or as someone belonging to a particular class having limitedcontrol and access (e.g., child). Upon recognizing the user as a guestor someone belonging to a limited class, the smart remote control 67only permits that user to view a subset of channels and to make limitedadjustments to the settings of the television and other devices. Forexample, a guest cannot adjust the digital video recorder (DVR)settings, and a child is limited to viewing child-appropriateprogramming.

According to some embodiments, similar controls are provided for otherinstruments, utilities, and devices 10 in the house. For example, sinks,bathtubs, and showers can be controlled by smart spigots that recognizeusers as guests or as children and therefore prevent water fromexceeding a designated temperature that is considered safe.

In some embodiments, in addition to containing processing and sensingcapabilities, each of the devices 34, 36, 46, 50, 52, 54, 56, and 58(collectively referred to as “the smart devices 10”) is capable of datacommunications and information sharing with any other of the smartdevices 10, as well as to any central server or cloud-computing systemor any other device that is network-connected anywhere in the world. Therequired data communications can be carried out using any of a varietyof custom or standard wireless protocols (Wi-Fi, ZigBee, 6LoWPAN, etc.)and/or any of a variety of custom or standard wired protocols (CAT6Ethernet, HomePlug, etc.)

According to embodiments, all or some of the smart devices 10 can serveas wireless or wired repeaters. For example, a first one of the smartdevices 10 can communicate with a second one of the smart device 10 viaa wireless router 60. The smart devices 10 can further communicate witheach other via a connection to a network, such as the Internet 62.Through the Internet 62, the smart devices 10 can communicate with acentral server or a cloud-computing system 64. The central server orcloud-computing system 64 can be associated with a manufacturer, supportentity, or service provider associated with the device 10. For oneembodiment, a user may be able to contact customer support using adevice itself rather than needing to use other communication means suchas a telephone or Internet-connected computer. Further, software updatescan be automatically sent from the central server or cloud-computingsystem 64 to devices (e.g., when available, when purchased, or atroutine intervals).

According to embodiments, the smart devices 10 combine to create a meshnetwork of spokesman and low-power nodes in the smart-home environment30, where some of the smart devices 10 are “spokesman” nodes and othersare “low-powered” nodes. Some of the smart devices 10 in the smart-homeenvironment 30 are battery powered, while others have a regular andreliable power source, such as by connecting to wiring (e.g., to 120Vline voltage wires) behind the walls 40 of the smart-home environment30. The smart devices 10 that have a regular and reliable power sourceare referred to as “spokesman” nodes. These nodes are equipped with thecapability of using any wireless protocol or manner to facilitatebidirectional communication with any of a variety of other devices 10 inthe smart-home environment 30 as well as with the central server orcloud-computing system 64. On the other hand, the devices 10 that arebattery powered are referred to as “low-power” nodes. These nodes tendto be smaller than spokesman nodes and can only communicate usingwireless protocols that requires very little power, such as Zigbee,6LoWPAN, etc. Further, some, but not all, low-power nodes are incapableof bidirectional communication. These low-power nodes send messages, butthey are unable to “listen”. Thus, other devices 10 in the smart-homeenvironment 30, such as the spokesman nodes, cannot send information tothese low-power nodes.

As described, the smart devices 10 serve as low-power and spokesmannodes to create a mesh network in the smart-home environment 30.Individual low-power nodes in the smart-home environment 30 regularlysend out messages regarding what they are sensing, and the otherlow-powered nodes in the smart-home environment 30—in addition tosending out their own messages—repeat the messages, thereby causing themessages to travel from node to node (i.e., device 10 to device 10)throughout the smart-home environment 30. The spokesman nodes in thesmart-home environment 30 are able to “drop down” to low-poweredcommunication protocols to receive these messages, translate themessages to other communication protocols, and send the translatedmessages to other spokesman nodes and/or the central server orcloud-computing system 64. Thus, the low-powered nodes using low-powercommunication protocols are able send messages across the entiresmart-home environment 30 as well as over the Internet 62 to the centralserver or cloud-computing system 64. According to embodiments, the meshnetwork enables the central server or cloud-computing system 64 toregularly receive data from all of the smart devices 10 in the home,make inferences based on the data, and send commands back to one of thesmart devices 10 to accomplish some of the smart-home objectivesdescribed herein.

As described, the spokesman nodes and some of the low-powered nodes arecapable of “listening”. Accordingly, users, other devices, and thecentral server or cloud-computing system 64 can communicate controls tothe low-powered nodes. For example, a user can use the portableelectronic device (e.g., a smartphone) 66 to send commands over theInternet 62 to the central server or cloud-computing system 64, whichthen relays the commands to the spokesman nodes in the smart-homeenvironment 30. The spokesman nodes drop down to a low-power protocol tocommunicate the commands to the low-power nodes throughout thesmart-home environment 30, as well as to other spokesman nodes that didnot receive the commands directly from the central server orcloud-computing system 64.

An example of a low-power node is a smart nightlight 65. In addition tohousing a light source, the smart nightlight 65 houses an occupancysensor, such as an ultrasonic or passive IR sensor, and an ambient lightsensor, such as a photoresistor or a single-pixel sensor that measureslight in the room. In some embodiments, the smart nightlight 65 isconfigured to activate the light source when its ambient light sensordetects that the room is dark and when its occupancy sensor detects thatsomeone is in the room. In other embodiments, the smart nightlight 65 issimply configured to activate the light source when its ambient lightsensor detects that the room is dark. Further, according to embodiments,the smart nightlight 65 includes a low-power wireless communication chip(e.g., ZigBee chip) that regularly sends out messages regarding theoccupancy of the room and the amount of light in the room, includinginstantaneous messages coincident with the occupancy sensor detectingthe presence of a person in the room. As mentioned above, these messagesmay be sent wirelessly, using the mesh network, from node to node (i.e.,smart device 10 to smart device 10) within the smart-home environment 30as well as over the Internet 62 to the central server or cloud-computingsystem 64.

Other examples of low-powered nodes include battery-operated versions ofthe smart hazard detectors 50. These smart hazard detectors 50 are oftenlocated in an area without access to constant and reliable power and, asdiscussed in detail below, may include any number and type of sensors12, such as smoke/fire/heat sensors, carbon monoxide/dioxide sensors,occupancy/motion sensors, ambient light sensors, temperature sensors,humidity sensors, and the like. Furthermore, smart hazard detectors 50can send messages that correspond to each of the respective sensors 12to the other devices 10 and the central server or cloud-computing system64, such as by using the mesh network as described above.

Examples of spokesman nodes include smart thermostats 46, smartdoorbells 52, smart wall switches 54, and smart wall plugs 56. Thesedevices 46, 52, 54, and 56 are often located near and connected to areliable power source, and therefore can include more power-consumingcomponents, such as one or more communication chips capable ofbidirectional communication in any variety of protocols.

In some embodiments, these low-powered and spokesman nodes (e.g.,devices 46, 50, 52, 54, 56, 58, and 65) can function as “tripwires” foran alarm system in the smart-home environment 30. For example, in theevent a perpetrator circumvents detection by alarm sensors located atwindows, doors, and other entry points of the smart-home environment 30,the alarm could be triggered upon receiving an occupancy, motion, heat,sound, etc. message from one or more of the low-powered and spokesmannodes in the mesh network. For example, upon receiving a message from asmart nightlight 65 indicating the presence of a person, the centralserver or cloud-computing system 64 or some other device could triggeran alarm, provided the alarm is armed at the time of detection. Thus,the alarm system could be enhanced by various low-powered and spokesmannodes located throughout the smart-home environment 30. In this example,a user could enhance the security of the smart-home environment 30 bybuying and installing extra smart nightlights 65.

In some embodiments, the mesh network can be used to automatically turnon and off lights as a person transitions from room to room. Forexample, the low-powered and spokesman nodes detect the person'smovement through the smart-home environment 30 and communicatecorresponding messages through the mesh network. Using the messages thatindicate which rooms are occupied, the central server or cloud-computingsystem 64 or some other device 10 activates and deactivates the smartwall switches 54 to automatically provide light as the person moves fromroom to room in the smart-home environment 30. Further, users mayprovide pre-configuration information that indicates which smart wallplugs 56 provide power to lamps and other light sources, such as thesmart nightlight 65. Alternatively, this mapping of light sources towall plugs 56 can be done automatically (e.g., the smart wall plugs 56detect when a light source is plugged into it, and it sends acorresponding message to the central server or cloud-computing system64). Using this mapping information in combination with messages thatindicate which rooms are occupied, the central server or cloud-computingsystem 64 or some other device activates and deactivates the smart wallplugs 56 that provide power to lamps and other light sources so as totrack the person's movement and provide light as the person moves fromroom to room.

In some embodiments, the mesh network of low-powered and spokesman nodescan be used to provide exit lighting in the event of an emergency. Insome instances, to facilitate this, users provide pre-configurationinformation that indicates exit routes in the smart-home environment 30.For example, for each room in the house, the user provides a map of thebest exit route. It should be appreciated that instead of a userproviding this information, the central server or cloud-computing system64 or some other device 10 could automatically determine the routesusing uploaded maps, diagrams, architectural drawings of the smart-homehouse, as well as using a map generated based on positional informationobtained from the nodes of the mesh network (e.g., positionalinformation from the devices 10 is used to construct a map of thehouse). In operation, when an alarm is activated (e.g., when one or moreof the smart hazard detector 50 detects smoke and activates an alarm),the central server or cloud-computing system 64 or some other device 10uses occupancy information obtained from the low-powered and spokesmannodes to determine which rooms are occupied and then turns on lights(e.g., nightlights 65, wall switches 54, wall plugs 56 that power lamps)along the exit routes from the occupied rooms so as to provide emergencyexit lighting.

Further included and illustrated in the smart-home environment 30 ofFIG. 2 are service robots 69 each configured to carry out, in anautonomous manner, any of a variety of household tasks. For someembodiments, the service robots 69 can be respectively configured toperform floor sweeping, floor washing, etc. in a manner similar to thatof known commercially available devices such as the ROOMBA™ and SCOOBA™products sold by iRobot, Inc. of Bedford, Mass. Tasks such as floorsweeping and floor washing can be considered as “away” or “while-away”tasks for purposes of the instant description, as it is generally moredesirable for these tasks to be performed when the occupants are notpresent. For other embodiments, one or more of the service robots 69 areconfigured to perform tasks such as playing music for an occupant,serving as a localized thermostat for an occupant, serving as alocalized air monitor/purifier for an occupant, serving as a localizedbaby monitor, serving as a localized hazard detector for an occupant,and so forth, it being generally more desirable for such tasks to becarried out in the immediate presence of the human occupant. Forpurposes of the instant description, such tasks can be considered as“human-facing” or “human-centric” tasks.

When serving as a localized thermostat for an occupant, a particular oneof the service robots 69 can be considered to be facilitating what canbe called a “personal comfort-area network” for the occupant, with theobjective being to keep the occupant's immediate space at a comfortabletemperature wherever that occupant may be located in the home. This canbe contrasted with conventional wall-mounted room thermostats, whichhave the more attenuated objective of keeping a statically-definedstructural space at a comfortable temperature. According to oneembodiment, the localized-thermostat service robot 69 is configured tomove itself into the immediate presence (e.g., within five feet) of aparticular occupant who has settled into a particular location in thehome (e.g. in the dining room to eat their breakfast and read the news).The localized-thermostat service robot 69 includes a temperature sensor12, a processor 28, and wireless communication components configuredsuch that control communications with the HVAC system, either directlyor through a wall-mounted wirelessly communicating thermostat coupled tothe HVAC system, are maintained and such that the temperature in theimmediate vicinity of the occupant is maintained at their desired level.If the occupant then moves and settles into another location (e.g. tothe living room couch to watch television), the localized-thermostatservice robot 69 proceeds to move and park itself next to the couch andkeep that particular immediate space at a comfortable temperature.

Technologies by which the localized-thermostat service robot 69 (and/orthe larger smart-home system of FIG. 2) can identify and locate theoccupant whose personal-area space is to be kept at a comfortabletemperature can include, but are not limited to, RFID sensing (e.g.,person having an RFID bracelet, RFID necklace, or RFID key fob),synthetic vision techniques (e.g., video cameras and face recognitionprocessors), audio techniques (e.g., voice, sound pattern, vibrationpattern recognition), ultrasound sensing/imaging techniques, andinfrared or near-field communication (NFC) techniques (e.g., personwearing an infrared or NFC-capable smartphone), along withrules-and-exceptions-based inference engines or artificial intelligencetechniques that draw useful conclusions from the sensed information(e.g., if there is only a single occupant present in the home, then thatis the person whose immediate space should be kept at a comfortabletemperature, and the selection of the desired comfortable temperatureshould correspond to that occupant's particular stored profile).

When serving as a localized air monitor/purifier for an occupant, aparticular service robot 69 can be considered to be facilitating whatcan be called a “personal health-area network” for the occupant, withthe objective being to keep the air quality in the occupant's immediatespace at healthy levels. Alternatively or in conjunction therewith,other health-related functions can be provided, such as monitoring thetemperature or heart rate of the occupant (e.g., using finely remotesensors, near-field communication with on-person monitors, etc.). Whenserving as a localized hazard detector for an occupant, a particularservice robot 69 can be considered to be facilitating what can be calleda “personal safety-area network” for the occupant, with the objectivebeing to ensure there is no excessive carbon monoxide, smoke, fire,etc., in the immediate space of the occupant. Methods analogous to thosedescribed above for personal comfort-area networks in terms of occupantidentifying and tracking are likewise applicable for personalhealth-area network and personal safety-area network embodiments.

According to some embodiments, the above-referenced facilitation ofpersonal comfort-area networks, personal health-area networks, personalsafety-area networks, and/or other such human-facing functionalities ofthe service robots 69, are further enhanced by logical integration withother smart sensors in the home according to rules-and-exceptions-basedinferencing techniques or artificial intelligence techniques forachieving better performance of those human-facing functionalitiesand/or for achieving those goals in energy-conserving or otherresource-conserving ways. Thus, for one embodiment relating to personalhealth-area networks, the air monitor/purifier service robot 69 can beconfigured to detect whether a household pet is moving toward thecurrently settled location of the occupant (e.g., using on-board sensorsand/or by data communications with other smart-home sensors along withrules-and-exceptions-based inferencing/artificial intelligencetechniques), and if so, the air purifying rate is immediately increasedin preparation for the arrival of more airborne pet dander. For anotherembodiment relating to personal safety-area networks, the hazarddetector service robot 69 can be advised by other smart-home sensorsthat the temperature and humidity levels are rising in the kitchen,which is nearby to the occupant's current dining room location, andresponsive to this advisory the hazard detector service robot 69 willtemporarily raise a hazard detection threshold, such as a smokedetection threshold, under an inference that any small increases inambient smoke levels will most likely be due to cooking activity and notdue to a genuinely hazardous condition.

The above-described “human-facing” and “away” functionalities can beprovided, without limitation, by multiple distinct service robots 69having respective dedicated ones of such functionalities, by a singleservice robot 69 having an integration of two or more different ones ofsuch functionalities, and/or any combinations thereof (including theability for a single service robot 69 to have both “away” and “humanfacing” functionalities) without departing from the scope of the presentteachings. Electrical power can be provided by virtue of rechargeablebatteries or other rechargeable methods, such as an out-of-the-waydocking station to which the service robots 69 will automatically dockand recharge its batteries (if needed) during periods of inactivity.Preferably, each service robot 69 includes wireless communicationcomponents that facilitate data communications with one or more of theother wirelessly communicating smart-home sensors of FIG. 2 and/or withone or more other service robots 69 (e.g., using Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Z-Wave,6LoWPAN, etc.), and one or more of the smart-home devices 10 can be incommunication with a remote server over the Internet 62. Alternativelyor in conjunction therewith, each service robot 69 can be configured tocommunicate directly with a remote server by virtue of cellulartelephone communications, satellite communications, 3G/4G network datacommunications, or other direct communication method.

Provided according to some embodiments are systems and methods relatingto the integration of the service robot(s) 69 with home security sensorsand related functionalities of the smart home system. The embodimentsare particularly applicable and advantageous when applied for thoseservice robots 69 that perform “away” functionalities or that otherwiseare desirable to be active when the home is unoccupied (hereinafter“away-service robots 69”). Included in the embodiments are methods andsystems for ensuring that home security systems, intrusion detectionsystems, and/or occupancy-sensitive environmental control systems (forexample, occupancy-sensitive automated setback thermostats that enterinto a lower-energy-using condition when the home is unoccupied) are noterroneously triggered by the away-service robots 69.

Provided according to one embodiment is a home automation and securitysystem (e.g., as shown in FIG. 2) that is remotely monitored by amonitoring service by virtue of automated systems (e.g., cloud-basedservers or other central servers 64, hereinafter “central server 64”)that are in data communications with one or more network-connectedelements of the home automation and security system. The away-servicerobots 69 are configured to be in operative data communication with thecentral server 64, and are configured such that they remain in anon-away-service state (e.g., a dormant state at their docking station)unless permission is granted from the central server 64 (e.g., by virtueof an “away-service-OK” message from the central server) to commencetheir away-service activities. An away-state determination made by thesystem, which can be arrived at (i) exclusively by local on-premisessmart device(s) 10 based on occupancy sensor data, (ii) exclusively bythe central server 64 based on received occupancy sensor data and/orbased on received proximity-related information such as GPS coordinatesfrom user smartphones or automobiles, or (iii) any combination of (i)and (ii) can then trigger the granting of away-service permission to theaway-service robots 69 by the central server 64. During the course ofthe away-service robot 69 activity, during which the away-service robots69 may continuously detect and send their in-home location coordinatesto the central server 64, the central server 64 can readily filtersignals from the occupancy sensing devices to distinguish between theaway-service robot 69 activity versus any unexpected intrusion activity,thereby avoiding a false intrusion alarm condition while also ensuringthat the home is secure. Alternatively or in conjunction therewith, thecentral server 64 may provide filtering data (such as an expectedoccupancy-sensing profile triggered by the away-service robots 69) tothe occupancy sensing nodes or associated processing nodes of the smarthome, such that the filtering is performed at the local level. Althoughsomewhat less secure, it would also be within the scope of the presentteachings for the central server 64 to temporarily disable the occupancysensing equipment for the duration of the away-service robot 69activity.

According to another embodiment, functionality similar to that of thecentral server 64 in the above example can be performed by an on-sitecomputing device such as a dedicated server computer, a “master” homeautomation console or panel, or as an adjunct function of one or more ofthe smart-home devices 10 of FIG. 2. In such an embodiment, there wouldbe no dependency on a remote service provider to provide the“away-service-OK” permission to the away-service robots 69 and thefalse-alarm-avoidance filtering service or filter information for thesensed intrusion detection signals.

According to other embodiments, there are provided methods and systemsfor implementing away-service robot 69 functionality while avoidingfalse home security alarms and false occupancy-sensitive environmentalcontrols without the requirement of a single overall event orchestrator.For purposes of the simplicity in the present disclosure, the homesecurity systems and/or occupancy-sensitive environmental controls thatwould be triggered by the motion, noise, vibrations, or otherdisturbances of the away-service robot 69 activity are referenced simplyas “activity sensing systems,” and when so triggered will yield a“disturbance-detected” outcome representative of the false trigger (forexample, an alarm message to a security service, or an “arrival”determination for an automated setback thermostat that causes the hometo be heated or cooled to a more comfortable “occupied” setpointtemperature). According to one embodiment, the away-service robots 69are configured to emit a standard ultrasonic sound throughout the courseof their away-service activity, the activity sensing systems areconfigured to detect that standard ultrasonic sound, and the activitysensing systems are further configured such that no disturbance-detectedoutcome will occur for as long as that standard ultrasonic sound isdetected. For other embodiments, the away-service robots 69 areconfigured to emit a standard notification signal throughout the courseof their away-service activity, the activity sensing systems areconfigured to detect that standard notification signal, and the activitysensing systems are further configured such that no disturbance-detectedoutcome will occur for as long as that standard notification signal isdetected, wherein the standard notification signal comprises one or moreof: an optical notifying signal; an audible notifying signal; aninfrared notifying signal; an infrasonic notifying signal; a wirelesslytransmitted data notification signal (e.g., an IP broadcast, multicast,or unicast notification signal, or a notification message sent in anTCP/IP two-way communication session).

According to some embodiments, the notification signals sent by theaway-service robots 69 to the activity sensing systems are authenticatedand encrypted such that the notifications cannot be learned andreplicated by a potential burglar. Any of a variety of knownencryption/authentication schemes can be used to ensure such datasecurity including, but not limited to, methods involving third partydata security services or certificate authorities. For some embodiments,a permission request-response model can be used, wherein any particularaway-service robot 69 requests permission from each activity sensingsystem in the home when it is ready to perform its away-service tasks,and does not initiate such activity until receiving a “yes” or“permission granted” message from each activity sensing system (or froma single activity sensing system serving as a “spokesman” for all of theactivity sensing systems). One advantage of the described embodimentsthat do not require a central event orchestrator is that there can(optionally) be more of an arms-length relationship between thesupplier(s) of the home security/environmental control equipment, on theone hand, and the supplier(s) of the away-service robot(s) 69, on theother hand, as it is only required that there is the described standardone-way notification protocol or the described standard two-wayrequest/permission protocol to be agreed upon by the respectivesuppliers.

According to still other embodiments, the activity sensing systems areconfigured to detect sounds, vibrations, RF emissions, or otherdetectable environmental signals or “signatures” that are intrinsicallyassociated with the away-service activity of each away-service robot 69,and are further configured such that no disturbance-detected outcomewill occur for as long as that particular detectable signal orenvironmental “signature” is detected. By way of example, a particularkind of vacuum-cleaning away-service robot 69 may emit a specific soundor RF signature. For one embodiment, the away-service environmentalsignatures for each of a plurality of known away-service robots 69 arestored in the memory of the activity sensing systems based onempirically collected data, the environmental signatures being suppliedwith the activity sensing systems and periodically updated by a remoteupdate server. For another embodiment, the activity sensing systems canbe placed into a “training mode” for the particular home in which theyare installed, wherein they “listen” and “learn” the particularenvironmental signatures of the away-service robots 69 for that homeduring that training session, and thereafter will suppressdisturbance-detected outcomes for intervals in which those environmentalsignatures are heard.

For still another embodiment, which is particularly useful when theactivity sensing system is associated with occupancy-sensitiveenvironmental control equipment rather than a home security system, theactivity sensing system is configured to automatically learn theenvironmental signatures for the away-service robots 69 by virtue ofautomatically performing correlations over time between detectedenvironmental signatures and detected occupancy activity. By way ofexample, for one embodiment an intelligent automatednonoccupancy-triggered setback thermostat such as the Nest LearningThermostat can be configured to constantly monitor for audible and RFactivity as well as to perform infrared-based occupancy detection. Inparticular view of the fact that the environmental signature of theaway-service robot 69 will remain relatively constant from event toevent, and in view of the fact that the away-service events will likelyeither (a) themselves be triggered by some sort of nonoccupancycondition as measured by the away-service robots 69 themselves, or (b)occur at regular times of day, there will be patterns in the collecteddata by which the events themselves will become apparent and for whichthe environmental signatures can be readily learned. Generally speaking,for this automatic-learning embodiment in which the environmentalsignatures of the away-service robots 69 are automatically learnedwithout requiring user interaction, it is more preferable that a certainnumber of false triggers be tolerable over the course of the learningprocess. Accordingly, this automatic-learning embodiment is morepreferable for application in occupancy-sensitive environmental controlequipment (such as an automated setback thermostat) rather than homesecurity systems for the reason that a few false occupancydeterminations may cause a few instances of unnecessary heating orcooling, but will not otherwise have any serious consequences, whereasfalse home security alarms may have more serious consequences.

According to embodiments, technologies including the sensors 12 of thesmart devices 10 located in the mesh network of the smart-homeenvironment 30 in combination with rules-and-exceptions-based inferenceengines or artificial intelligence provided at the central server orcloud-computing system 64 are used to provide a personal “smart alarmclock” for individual occupants of the home. For example, user-occupantscan communicate with the central server or cloud-computing system 64 viatheir mobile devices 66 to access an interface for the smart alarmclock. There, occupants can turn on their “smart alarm clock” and inputa wake time for the next day and/or for additional days. In someembodiments, the occupant may have the option of setting a specific waketime for each day of the week, as well as the option of setting some orall of the inputted wake times to “repeat”. Artificial intelligence willbe used to consider the occupant's response to these alarms when they gooff and make inferences about the user's preferred sleep patterns overtime.

According to embodiments, the smart device 10 in the smart-homeenvironment 30 that happens to be closest to the occupant when theoccupant falls asleep will be the device 10 that transmits messagesregarding when the occupant stopped moving, from which the centralserver or cloud-computing system 64 will make inferences about where andwhen the occupant prefers to sleep. Also, the closest smart device 10 tothe sleeping occupant may be the device 10 that sounds the alarm to wakethe occupant. In this manner, the “smart alarm clock” will follow theoccupant throughout the house, by tracking the individual occupantsbased on their “unique signature”, which is determined based on dataobtained from sensors 12 located in the smart devices 10. For example,the sensors 12 include ultrasonic sensors, passive IR sensors, and thelike. The unique signature is based on a combination of walking gate,patterns of movement, voice, height, size, etc. It should be appreciatedthat facial recognition may also be used.

According to an embodiment, the wake times associated with the “smartalarm clock” are used by the smart thermostat 46 to control the HVACsystem in an efficient manner so as to pre-heat or cool the house to theoccupant's desired “sleeping” and “awake” temperature settings. Thepreferred settings can be learned over time, such as by observing whichtemperature the occupant sets the thermostat 46 to before going to sleepand which temperature the occupant sets the thermostat 46 to upon wakingup

According to an embodiment, a device 10 is positioned proximate to theoccupant's bed, such as on an adjacent nightstand, and collects data asthe occupant sleeps using noise sensors, motion sensors (e.g.,ultrasonic, IR, and optical), etc. Data may be obtained by the othersmart devices 10 in the room as well. Such data may include theoccupant's breathing patterns, heart rate, movement, etc. Inferences aremade based on this data in combination with data that indicates when theoccupant actually wakes up. For example, if—on a regular basis—theoccupant's heart rate, breathing, and moving all increase by 5% to 10%,twenty to thirty minutes before the occupant wakes up each morning, thenpredictions can be made regarding when the occupant is going to wake.Other devices in the home can use these predictions to provide othersmart-home objectives, such as adjusting the smart thermostat 46 so asto pre-heat or cool the home to the occupant's desired setting beforethe occupant wakes up. Further, these predictions can be used to set the“smart alarm clock” for the occupant, to turn on lights, etc.

According to embodiments, technologies including the sensors 12 of thesmart devices 10 located throughout the smart-home environment 30 incombination with rules-and-exceptions-based inference engines orartificial intelligence provided at the central server orcloud-computing system 64 are used to detect or monitor the progress ofAlzheimer's Disease. For example, the unique signatures of the occupantsare used to track the individual occupants' movement throughout thesmart-home environment 30. This data can be aggregated and analyzed toidentify patterns indicative of Alzheimer's. Oftentimes, individualswith Alzheimer's have distinctive patterns of migration in their homes.For example, a person will walk to the kitchen and stand there for awhile, then to the living room and stand there for a while, and thenback to the kitchen. This pattern will take about thirty minutes, andthen the person will repeat the pattern. According to embodiments, theremote servers or cloud computing architectures 64 analyze the person'smigration data collected by the mesh network of the smart-homeenvironment 30 to identify such patterns.

In addition, another device 10 in the smart-home environment 30 mayinclude a hub device 72, such as a Nest® hub device. In someembodiments, the hub device 72 may be an example of the “master” panelpreviously mentioned regarding the security system. The hub device 72may communicate wirelessly over the wireless network provided by therouter 60 with each of the other devices 10 in the smart-homeenvironment 30 via separate channels. For example, the hub device 72 maymonitor each device 10 to ensure it is active and communicating bypinging each device 10 over its individual channel. Further, the hubdevice 72 may communicate with remote servers such as Nest® servers 64,over the Internet via WiFi or its wired component 24 and/or over 3G viaits cellular component 26. Additionally, the hub device 72 maycommunicate with cellular towers via its cellular component 26 as analternative communication medium in case its wireless network is beingsubjected to a jamming attack. Thus, the hub device 72 provides robustmechanisms to detect wireless communication jamming attacks and notifythe proper parties of the incident. As may be appreciated, employingsuch techniques greatly enhances the security a homeowner may experienceand may deter crime.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, an embodiment of the extensible devices andservices platform 80 includes a processing engine 86, which can beconcentrated at a single server or distributed among several differentcomputing entities without limitation. The processing engine 86 caninclude engines configured to receive data from devices of smart-homeenvironments 30 (e.g., via the Internet 62 or a hubbed network), toindex the data, to analyze the data and/or to generate statistics basedon the analysis or as part of the analysis. The analyzed data can bestored as derived home data 88.

Results of the analysis or statistics can thereafter be transmitted backto the device 10 that provided home data used to derive the results, toother devices 10, to a server providing a webpage to a user of thedevice 10, or to other non-device entities. For example, use statistics,use statistics relative to use of other devices 10, use patterns, and/orstatistics summarizing sensor 12 readings can be generated by theprocessing engine 86 and transmitted. The results or statistics can beprovided via the Internet 62. In this manner, the processing engine 86can be configured and programmed to derive a variety of usefulinformation from the home data 82. A single server can include one ormore engines.

The derived data can be highly beneficial at a variety of differentgranularities for a variety of useful purposes, ranging from explicitprogrammed control of the devices on a per-home, per-neighborhood, orper-region basis (for example, demand-response programs for electricalutilities), to the generation of inferential abstractions that canassist on a per-home basis (for example, an inference can be drawn thatthe homeowner has left for vacation and so security detection equipmentcan be put on heightened sensitivity), to the generation of statisticsand associated inferential abstractions that can be used for governmentor charitable purposes. For example, processing engine 86 can generatestatistics about device 10 usage across a population of devices 10 andsend the statistics to device users, service providers or other entities(e.g., that have requested or may have provided monetary compensationfor the statistics).

According to some embodiments, the home data 82, the derived home data88, and/or another data can be used to create “automated neighborhoodsafety networks.” For example, in the event the central server orcloud-computing architecture 64 receives data indicating that aparticular home has been broken into, is experiencing a fire, or someother type of emergency event, an alarm is sent to other smart homes inthe “neighborhood.” In some instances, the central server orcloud-computing architecture 64 automatically identifies smart homeswithin a radius of the home experiencing the emergency and sends analarm to the identified homes. In such instances, the other homes in the“neighborhood” do not have to sign up for or register to be a part of asafety network, but instead are notified of an emergency based on theirproximity to the location of the emergency. This creates robust andevolving neighborhood security watch networks, such that if one person'shome is getting broken into, an alarm can be sent to nearby homes, suchas by audio announcements via the smart devices 10 located in thosehomes. It should be appreciated that this can be an opt-in service andthat, in addition to or instead of the central server or cloud-computingarchitecture 64 selecting which homes to send alerts to, individuals cansubscribe to participate in such networks and individuals can specifywhich homes they want to receive alerts from. This can include, forexample, the homes of family members who live in different cities, suchthat individuals can receive alerts when their loved ones in otherlocations are experiencing an emergency.

According to some embodiments, sound, vibration, and/or motion sensingcomponents of the smart devices 10 are used to detect sound, vibration,and/or motion created by running water. Based on the detected sound,vibration, and/or motion, the central server or cloud-computingarchitecture 64 makes inferences about water usage in the home andprovides related services. For example, the central server orcloud-computing architecture 64 can run programs/algorithms thatrecognize what water sounds like and when it is running in the home.According to one embodiment, to map the various water sources of thehome, upon detecting running water, the central server orcloud-computing architecture 64 sends a message to an occupant's mobiledevice asking if water is currently running or if water has beenrecently run in the home and, if so, which room and whichwater-consumption appliance (e.g., sink, shower, toilet, etc.) was thesource of the water. This enables the central server or cloud-computingarchitecture 64 to determine the “signature” or “fingerprint” of eachwater source in the home. This is sometimes referred to herein as “audiofingerprinting water usage.”

In one illustrative example, the central server or cloud-computingarchitecture 64 creates a signature for the toilet in the masterbathroom, and whenever that toilet is flushed, the central server orcloud-computing architecture 64 will know that the water usage at thattime is associated with that toilet. Thus, the central server orcloud-computing architecture 64 can track the water usage of that toiletas well as each water-consumption application in the home. Thisinformation can be correlated to water bills or smart water meters so asto provide users with a breakdown of their water usage.

According to some embodiments, sound, vibration, and/or motion sensingcomponents of the smart devices 10 are used to detect sound, vibration,and/or motion created by mice and other rodents as well as by termites,cockroaches, and other insects (collectively referred to as “pests”).Based on the detected sound, vibration, and/or motion, the centralserver or cloud-computing architecture 64 makes inferences aboutpest-detection in the home and provides related services. For example,the central server or cloud-computing architecture 64 can runprograms/algorithms that recognize what certain pests sound like, howthey move, and/or the vibration they create, individually and/orcollectively. According to one embodiment, the central server orcloud-computing architecture 64 can determine the “signatures” ofparticular types of pests.

For example, in the event the central server or cloud-computingarchitecture 64 detects sounds that may be associated with pests, itnotifies the occupants of such sounds and suggests hiring a pest controlcompany. If it is confirmed that pests are indeed present, the occupantsinput to the central server or cloud-computing architecture 64 confirmsthat its detection was correct, along with details regarding theidentified pests, such as name, type, description, location, quantity,etc. This enables the central server or cloud-computing architecture 64to “tune” itself for better detection and create “signatures” or“fingerprints” for specific types of pests. For example, the centralserver or cloud-computing architecture 64 can use the tuning as well asthe signatures and fingerprints to detect pests in other homes, such asnearby homes that may be experiencing problems with the same pests.Further, for example, in the event that two or more homes in a“neighborhood” are experiencing problems with the same or similar typesof pests, the central server or cloud-computing architecture 64 can makeinferences that nearby homes may also have such problems or may besusceptible to having such problems, and it can send warning messages tothose homes to help facilitate early detection and prevention.

In some embodiments, to encourage innovation and research and toincrease products and services available to users, the devices andservices platform 80 expose a range of application programminginterfaces (APIs) 90 to third parties, such as charities 94,governmental entities 96 (e.g., the Food and Drug Administration or theEnvironmental Protection Agency), academic institutions 98 (e.g.,university researchers), businesses 100 (e.g., providing devicewarranties or service to related equipment, targeting advertisementsbased on home data), utility companies 102, and other third parties. TheAPIs 90 are coupled to and permit third-party systems to communicatewith the central server or the cloud-computing system 64, including theservices 84, the processing engine 86, the home data 82, and the derivedhome data 88. For example, the APIs 90 allow applications executed bythe third parties to initiate specific data processing tasks that areexecuted by the central server or the cloud-computing system 64, as wellas to receive dynamic updates to the home data 82 and the derived homedata 88.

For example, third parties can develop programs and/or applications,such as web or mobile apps, that integrate with the central server orthe cloud-computing system 64 to provide services and information tousers. Such programs and application may be, for example, designed tohelp users reduce energy consumption, to preemptively service faultyequipment, to prepare for high service demands, to track past serviceperformance, etc., or to perform any of a variety of beneficialfunctions or tasks now known or hereinafter developed.

According to some embodiments, third-party applications make inferencesfrom the home data 82 and the derived home data 88, such inferences mayinclude when are occupants home, when are they sleeping, when are theycooking, when are they in the den watching television, and when do theyshower. The answers to these questions may help third-parties benefitconsumers by providing them with interesting information, products andservices as well as with providing them with targeted advertisements.

In one example, a shipping company creates an application that makesinferences regarding when people are at home. The application uses theinferences to schedule deliveries for times when people will most likelybe at home. The application can also build delivery routes around thesescheduled times. This reduces the number of instances where the shippingcompany has to make multiple attempts to deliver packages, and itreduces the number of times consumers have to pick up their packagesfrom the shipping company.

To further illustrate, FIG. 4 describes an abstracted functional view110 of the extensible devices and services platform 80 of FIG. 3, withparticular reference to the processing engine 86 as well as devices,such as those of the smart-home environment 30 of FIG. 2. Even thoughdevices 10 situated in smart-home environments 30 will have an endlessvariety of different individual capabilities and limitations, they canall be thought of as sharing common characteristics in that each of themis a data consumer 112 (DC), a data source 114 (DS), a services consumer116 (SC), and a services source 118 (SS). Advantageously, in addition toproviding the essential control information needed for the devices 10 toachieve their local and immediate objectives, the extensible devices andservices platform 80 can also be configured to harness the large amountof data that is flowing out of these devices. In addition to enhancingor optimizing the actual operation of the devices 10 themselves withrespect to their immediate functions, the extensible devices andservices platform 80 can be directed to “repurposing” that data in avariety of automated, extensible, flexible, and/or scalable ways toachieve a variety of useful objectives. These objectives may bepredefined or adaptively identified based on, e.g., usage patterns,device efficiency, and/or user input (e.g., requesting specificfunctionality).

For example, FIG. 4 shows processing engine 86 as including a number ofparadigms 120. Processing engine 86 can include a managed servicesparadigm 120 a that monitors and manages primary or secondary device 10functions. The device 10 functions can include ensuring proper operationof a device 10 given user inputs, estimating that (e.g., and respondingto an instance in which) an intruder is or is attempting to be in adwelling, detecting a failure of equipment coupled to the device 10(e.g., a light bulb having burned out), implementing or otherwiseresponding to energy demand response events, or alerting a user of acurrent or predicted future event or characteristic. Processing engine86 can further include an advertising/communication paradigm 120 b thatestimates characteristics (e.g., demographic information), desiresand/or products of interest of a user based on device usage. Services,promotions, products or upgrades can then be offered or automaticallyprovided to the user. Processing engine 86 can further include a socialparadigm 120 c that uses information from a social network, providesinformation to a social network (for example, based on device usage),and/or processes data associated with user and/or device 10 interactionswith the social network platform. For example, a user's status asreported to their trusted contacts on the social network could beupdated to indicate when they are home based on light detection,security system inactivation or device usage detectors. As anotherexample, a user may be able to share device-usage statistics with otherusers. In yet another example, a user may share the setpoint schedulesgenerated that result in low power bills and other users may downloadthe setpoint schedule to their smart thermostat 46 to reduce their powerbills.

The processing engine 86 can include achallenges/rules/compliance/rewards paradigm 120 d that informs a userof challenges, competitions, rules, compliance regulations and/orrewards and/or that uses operation data to determine whether a challengehas been met, a rule or regulation has been complied with and/or areward has been earned. The challenges, rules or regulations can relateto efforts to conserve energy, to live safely (e.g., reducing exposureto toxins or carcinogens), to conserve money and/or equipment life, toimprove health, etc. For example, one challenge may involve participantsturning down their thermostat 46 by one degree for one week. Those thatsuccessfully complete the challenge are rewarded, such as by coupons,virtual currency, status, etc. Regarding compliance, an example involvesa rental-property owner making a rule that no renters are permitted toaccess certain owner's rooms. The devices 10 in the room havingoccupancy sensors could send updates to the owner when the room isaccessed.

The processing engine 86 can integrate or otherwise utilize extrinsicinformation 122 from extrinsic sources to improve the functioning of oneor more processing paradigms. Extrinsic information 122 can be used tointerpret data received from a device 10, to determine a characteristicof the environment near the device 10 (e.g., outside a structure thatthe device is enclosed in), to determine services or products availableto the user, to identify a social network or social-network information,to determine contact information of entities (e.g., public-serviceentities such as an emergency-response team, the police or a hospital)near the device 10, etc., to identify statistical or environmentalconditions, trends or other information associated with a home orneighborhood, and so forth.

An extraordinary range and variety of benefits can be brought about by,and fit within the scope of, the described extensible devices andservices platform 80, ranging from the ordinary to the profound. Thus,in one “ordinary” example, each bedroom of the smart-home environment 30can be provided with a smart wall switch 54, a smart wall plug 56,and/or smart hazard detectors 50, all or some of which include anoccupancy sensor, wherein the occupancy sensor is also capable ofinferring (e.g., by virtue of motion detection, facial recognition,audible sound patterns, etc.) whether the occupant is asleep or awake.If a serious fire event is sensed, the remote security/monitoringservice or fire department is advised of how many occupants there are ineach bedroom, and whether those occupants are still asleep (or immobile)or whether they have properly evacuated the bedroom. While this is, ofcourse, a very advantageous capability accommodated by the describedextensible devices and services platform 80, there can be substantiallymore “profound” examples that can truly illustrate the potential of alarger “intelligence” that can be made available. By way of perhaps amore “profound” example, the same bedroom occupancy data that is beingused for fire safety can also be “repurposed” by the processing engine86 in the context of a social paradigm of neighborhood child developmentand education. Thus, for example, the same bedroom occupancy and motiondata discussed in the “ordinary” example can be collected and madeavailable (properly anonymized) for processing in which the sleeppatterns of schoolchildren in a particular ZIP code can be identifiedand tracked. Localized variations in the sleeping patterns of theschoolchildren may be identified and correlated, for example, todifferent nutrition programs in local schools.

Enhanced Automated Control Scheduling

An enhanced automated control scheduling may enable improving efficiencyand providing automated device control schedules that may control devicesettings of smart devices 10 in a way that is more closely tailored tothe user's preferences as revealed through their behavior than might bea rules-and-exceptions-based approach. The device control schedules alsomay be more efficient, among other things. The preference function maybe used to plan out an automated device control schedule. In the case ofsmart lighting, the automated device control schedule may be a lightingschedule that controls lighting levels in relation to time of day orother factors, such as content being displayed on a television or tabletdevice. In the case of a variable-height desk, the automated devicecontrol schedule may control a height of the desk in relation to time ofday. Indeed, any suitable control schedule for any suitable electronicdevice that can be controlled automatically according to such a schedulemay be generated based on a corresponding preference function as taughtby this disclosure. In effect, this enhanced automated controlscheduling provides a holistic view of user behavior upon which togenerate an automated control schedule.

In the following discussion, the automated device control schedule mayinclude a setpoint schedule used by a smart thermostat to control anenvironmental control system. It should be appreciated that, while anHVAC system is discussed by way of example as an environmental controlsystem that may be controlled by a smart thermostat according to thisdisclosure, the disclosed systems and methods may be used with anysuitable environmental control system that can adjust the temperature ofa structure (e.g., an environmental control system that automaticallyopens windows or vents to raise or lower the temperature in thestructure, or a system that cools only or heats only). It should also beappreciated that, while the enhanced automated control scheduling isperformed by the smart thermostat by way of example according to thisdisclosure, in some embodiments, the enhanced automated controlscheduling may be performed by another device in the smart homeenvironment, an online service, or some combination thereof, and theautomated schedule may be provided to the device.

With the foregoing in mind, FIG. 5 illustrates a flow diagram of aprocess 130 suitable for determining an automated device controlschedule that best fits a preference function, in accordance with anembodiment. The process 130 may be implemented as computer instructionsstored on one or more tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medias(e.g., memory 27) and executable by one or more processors 28. Theprocess 130 may include tracking user behavior that suggests howsatisfied the user is with device settings (e.g., setpoint temperaturesof a thermostat) in relation to one or more variables (e.g., time of dayand/or day of the week) (process block 132). The process 130 may alsoinclude determining one or more preference functions that map thelikelihood of user preferences for device settings to the one or morevariables based on the tracked user behavior and/or other desiredconstraints, such as efficiency or wear and tear (process block 134).Once the preference function is determined, the process 130 may includegenerating an automated device control schedule that best fits thepreference functions and/or other desired constraints, such asefficiency or wear and tear (process block 136). The device may becontrolled using the automated device control schedule (process block138), and the process 130 may be repeated as desired (e.g., every nightat midnight) (process block 140).

Some user behavior that may be suggestive of temperature preferences 150is illustrated in FIG. 6. A first user behavior 152 that may be trackedincludes following (not changing) the temperature of a setpointschedule. If the user follows (does not change) the temperature of asetpoint schedule while the device, it may be presumed that the user iscomfortable with that temperature and prefers that temperature at thetimes the temperature was followed. A second user behavior 154 that maybe tracked includes changing the current setpoint temperature. Changingthe current setpoint temperature may refer to a user using the device oraccessing the device via a web application to move the setpointtemperature up or down. Changing the current setpoint temperature is notequivalent to adding a setpoint to a setpoint schedule because changingthe current setpoint temperature may be a onetime change.

A third user behavior 156 that may be tracked is manually deleting ascheduled setpoint. This behavior strongly suggests that the user doesnot want a temperature setpoint where it has been deleted. A fourth userbehavior 158 that may be tracked is manually adding a schedule setpoint.Manually adding a scheduled setpoint may refer to adding or moving asetpoint temperature at a setpoint time on a setpoint schedule for anupcoming period of time. A fifth user behavior 160 that may be trackedincludes activity that shows discomfort (e.g., sweating, shivering, orfitful sleep). If the device detects that the user is sweating at acertain setpoint temperature and time period, the device may learn thatthe setpoint temperature is too warm during that time period. Likewise,if the device detects that the user is shivering, the device may raisethe setpoint temperature during the associated time period where theuser is presumed to be uncomfortable in future setpoint schedules.

FIGS. 7-9 provide examples of some of the behavior mentioned above. Inparticular, FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of a user changing atemperature setting of a smart thermostat 46 by physically rotating thethermostat, in accordance with an embodiment. It should be noted thatalthough a smart thermostat 46 is used as an example throughout thediscussion, any suitable electronic device 10 may be used that hasaccess to a structure's thermal properties and temperature feedback. Thethermostat 46 may include the hardware and/or software of the device 10described above that can be used to implement the specific embodimentsdescribed herein. In the depicted embodiment, the thermostat 46 may becontrolled by two types of physical user input, the first being arotation of the outer ring 132, and the second being an inward push onan outer cap 134 until an audible and/or tactile “click” occurs. In someembodiments, controlling the thermostat 46 may also include accessingthe thermostat 46 from a portable electronic device using an applicationprogram or from a secure web portal using a browser on a computer orportable electronic device.

FIG. 8 illustrates a view of a user changing a temperature setting of athermostat 46 via an application program screen 161 that remotelycontrols the thermostat 46, in accordance with an embodiment. Theapplication program may be accessible via a smart phone, tablet,computer, or the like which includes an electronic display. Asillustrated, the user may actuate an upward arrow 162 by pressing atouch screen or clicking a mouse cursor to raise the temperature. Also,the user may actuate a downward arrow 163 by pressing a touch screen orclicking a mouse cursor to lower the temperature. The screen 161 maydisplay the updated setpoint temperature to the user.

FIG. 9 illustrates a view of a user manually adjusting a setpointschedule used to control the thermostat via a screen 164 on anapplication program that remotely controls the thermostat 46, inaccordance with an embodiment. The setpoint schedule represents thesetpoints manually added to a weekly schedule, here modifying a Friday,using the application program. In the depicted embodiment, the user hasmanually added two setpoints 165 and 166. The first setpoint 165 wasmanually added with a setpoint temperature of 74° F. for 7:00 AM and thesecond setpoint 166 was manually added with a setpoint temperature of82° F. for 4:00 PM (16:00). It may be understood that the user followedthe setpoint temperature from midnight to 7:00 because there are nosetpoints prior to 7:00. Likewise, it should also be assumed that theuser followed the first setpoint temperature from 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM,and the user followed the second setpoint temperature from 4:00 PM tomidnight. By tracking the user's behavior, a preference function may bedetermined that maps the likelihood of user preferences for devicesettings to one or more variables.

For example, FIG. 10 illustrates a preference function that may bedeveloped based on the user interactions of FIGS. 7-9, in accordancewith an embodiment. In the illustrated embodiment, the preferencefunction 170 relates user preferences for device settings 172 (in thiscase, temperature settings of the thermostat 46) to a variable 174 (inthis case, time of day) by adding or subtracting a weight 176 (processblock 134 of FIG. 5). The weight that was added or subtracted from eachtemperature and time coordinate may be selected from a range of weights176. It should be noted that any suitable range of weights 176 may beused and the disclosure is not limited to the specific weights used inthe range of weights 176. The depicted range of weights 176 ranges from0, being the lowest weight and represented by the darkest color, to 7,being the highest weight and represented by the lightest color. Sincethe weights are relative, however, any suitable range may be employed.

In the example preference function of FIG. 10, from midnight to 7:00,where the user followed the setpoint temperature, a relatively light(e.g., heavily weighted) band is present around 82° F., representing amedium weight has been added to 82° F. from midnight to 7:00. Then, at7:00, when the user manually added a setpoint to 74° F., a relativelyhigh weight is added around that point and gradually reduced to producea very light band around 74° F. until 16:00. Here, a relatively highweight (e.g., 6 or 7) has been added to 74° F. at 7:00 and graduallysmoothed to a relatively constant lower weight extending to 16:00. Afterthe setpoint temperature was changed from 82° F. at 7:00 to the manuallyadded setpoint of 74° F., there may be a banned area 178 introduced inthe preference function that inhibits setpoints from being selected inautomated device control schedules too close in time after the addedsetpoint because it may be assumed that the user prefers the addedsetpoint temperature at the setpoint time and changing the setpoint tooquickly may cause user frustration. Further, at 16:00, a very light bandis present around 82° F. until midnight because the user manually addeda setpoint with a setpoint temperature of 82° F. at 16:00, according tothe setpoint schedule of FIG. 9.

An automated device control schedule may be generated that best fits thepreference function (process block 136 of FIG. 5). A line 179 representsa candidate setpoint schedule that may best fit the preference function170. The line 179 goes from midnight to 7:00 setpoint temperature=82°F., 7:00 to 16:00 setpoint temperature=74° F., 16:00 to midnightsetpoint temperature=82° F., exactly along the highest weights of thepreference function 170. FIG. 11 illustrates an example of an automateddevice control schedule 180 that tracks the line 179, which best fitsthe preference function 170 of FIG. 10. The automated device controlschedule 180 generated includes a setpoint temperature 181 of 82° F.from midnight to 7 AM, then a scheduled setpoint 182 with a setpointtemperature of 74° F. at 7:00 until 16:00, and a scheduled setpoint 184with a setpoint temperature of 82° F. at 16:00 to midnight. Theautomated device control schedule 180 selected the setpoint temperaturesand setpoint times that optimized the score when processed against thepreference function 170 of FIG. 10. It should be appreciated that theautomated device control schedule 180 “learned” two setpoints 182 and184 using a preference function indicative of user preferences based onuser behavior. The generated automated device control schedule 180 maybe applied to control the device accordingly (process block 138 of FIG.5).

Generating Preference Functions

Keeping the overview of the enhanced automated control schedulingdiscussed above in mind, certain details of generating preferencefunctions are now described. As noted above, a preference function mayindicate a likelihood of user preferences for device settings (e.g.,temperature settings for a smart thermostat) in relation to somevariable (e.g., time of day). As previously described, a preferencefunction may be characterized as a function including at least twovariables (in one example, temperature and time of day), and a scalarrange of weights. The preference function may accept a temperature andtime as input and output an associated weight. The weight may be addedto or subtracted from a temperature and time combination based on thetype of user behavior and whether the behavior suggests user preferenceor disinterest in the temperature and time combination.

Before discussing the generation of preference functions in greaterdetail, it may be first appreciated that any suitable number ofpreference functions may be maintained. For example, FIG. 12 illustratesa tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium 190 that maintains afirst set 192 of seven preferences functions for a cooling mode and asecond set 194 of seven preference functions for a heating mode, for atotal of two preference functions corresponding to each day of the week.As may be appreciated, an HVAC system may include various modes, such ascooling, heating, and range (e.g., heat if temperatures drop below somelevel and cool if temperatures exceed some level). In some embodiments,the preference functions may not be updated with new user interactionsunless the user has kept the device in a mode for some amount of time.For example, the cooling mode preference function for Monday 196 mayonly be updated if the thermostat 46 was in cooling mode for at leastsome threshold percentage of time on Monday (e.g., 75%, 80%, 90%, 95% orbeyond). Likewise, a heating preference function may only be updatedbased on user behavior if the thermostat was in heating mode for atleast some threshold percentage of time on a given day. Also, it shouldbe noted that the cooling mode preference functions 192 may be used forcooling in ranged mode and the heating mode preference functions 194 maybe used for heating in ranged mode. The cooling mode preferencefunctions 192 may apply efficiency bonuses differently than the heatingmode preference functions 194. For example, higher efficiency bonusweights may be added to higher temperatures that are more efficient incooling mode, whereas higher efficiency bonus weights may be added tolower temperatures that are more efficient in heating mode. Separatingthe preference functions into cooling and heating modes may enable moreaccurate automated setpoints schedules being selected when weatherseasons change and the thermostat 46 switches between cooling, heating,and ranged modes.

It should be appreciated that, while certain embodiments involvepreference functions of one day duration as shown in FIG. 12, otherembodiments may employ preference functions of other suitable duration(e.g., a weeklong preference, a weekday preference function, a weekendpreference function, a daytime preference function, a nighttimepreference function, and so forth).

A process 200 suitable for generating a preference function for aparticular day of the week based on tracked user behaviors during thatday is illustrated in a flow diagram in FIG. 13, in accordance with anembodiment. The process 200 may be implemented as computer instructionsstored on one or more tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medias(e.g., memory 27) and executable by one or more processors 28. Some orall components of the process 200 may take place on the device 10 (e.g.,thermostat 46) that is going to be controlled, or may take placeelsewhere (e.g., another device 10 or an online service, such as theNest® service).

For purposes of this discussion, the process 200 should be understood tobe updating a setpoint schedule 202 for a current day as shown in FIG.14. The setpoint schedule 202 of FIG. 14 includes only one setpoint 204at 80° F. at 18:00. Thus, the setpoint temperature 206 would remain thesame (80° F.) throughout the entire day if the user did not adjust thetemperature throughout the day. However, on this particular day, theuser is shown to have interacted with the thermostat 46, as illustratedin FIG. 15, which provides an example of daily user behavior in a plot208. As depicted in the plot 208, the user followed the originalsetpoint temperature 206 until 6:00, when the user left the structureand was away until almost 12:00. After returning to the structure, theuser changed the setpoint temperature 206 from 80° F. to a newtemperature 210 of 70° F. at 12:00. Also, at some point during the day,the user manually added setpoint 212 including a setpoint temperature of74° F. at 16:00 and manually deleted the previously scheduled setpoint204 represented by the “X.”

Using the user's behavior (e.g., as shown in the plot 208 of FIG. 15)for the current day, a preference function 220 may be determined thatmaps weights relating the user's revealed preferences for certaintemperature and time coordinates. For example, FIGS. 16-21 illustratehow a preference function 220 may be built by updating a previouslystored preference function 220 for the current day. The preferencefunction 220 is illustrated in FIGS. 16-20 as a matrix with mappedweights that will be adjusted based on the user's behavior shown in FIG.15. For discussion purposes, the preference function is represented as a12 row by 12 column matrix of weights associated with time/temperaturecoordinates. In an actual implementation, any suitable number ofcoordinates in any suitable discrete increments may be employed.

It should be noted that the elements that are shown as empty in thepreference function 220 may include a weight of 0. It should also benoted that “elements” may also be referred to as “coordinates” herein.In the example of FIGS. 16-21, each element represents a 2.5° F.temperature range and a 2 hour time interval. It should be understoodthat the temperature ranges and time intervals represented by theelements are for illustration purposes only and, in some embodiments,the preference function may assign a weight to any suitable temperaturerange (e.g., every 1° F. or ° C., every 0.5° F. or ° C., every 0.1° F.or ° C., every 0.05° F. or ° C., or the like) or time interval (e.g.,every second, every 5 seconds, every 30 seconds, every 1 minute, every15 minutes, every 30 minutes, every 1 hour, or the like).

The preference function 220 in the example of FIG. 16 is a previouslygenerated daily preference for the current day (e.g., Monday). It shouldbe noted that zero weight may be added to any default temperatures inthe preference function where no event (e.g., setpoint change, manualsetpoint addition, setpoint followed, being nearby a setpoint, etc.)occurred. Also, if the preference function is generated anew based on aprevious setpoint schedule from a rules-and-exception approach, thehighest weights (e.g., 7, 9, 10.50, 12, or the like) may be added to thesetpoint temperature/time coordinates from the previous setpointschedule to provide the highest learning deference, and a larger decay(e.g., 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, or the like) applied to nearby temperaturesto create a wider spread of weight distributions, as discussed in moredetail below. It may be understood that past user behavior resulted inthe previously generated preference function 220, and that from thepreviously generated preference function 220 of FIG. 16, the currentsetpoint schedule of FIG. 14 was previously generated. But as notedabove, the user's behavior on this day, as shown in FIG. 15, issuggestive of preferences for a setpoint schedule different from thanthat of FIG. 14. Thus, the previously generated daily preferencefunction 220 of FIG. 16 will be updated to incorporate that new userbehavior of FIG. 15.

Indeed, the process 200 of FIG. 13 may include tracking user behaviorthroughout the day (process block 222) to track the user behavior shownin FIG. 15. It should be noted that if there is a threshold amount ofdata missed for a day (e.g., more than 5 MB, LOMB, 15 MB, or the like)or a threshold amount of time where data was missed (e.g., more than 5minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes, or the like), then the process 200 maynot continue—that is, the preference function 220 for the day, shown inFIG. 16, may be allowed to remain unchanged; likewise, the currentweekly setpoint schedule may also be allowed to remain unchanged underthose conditions.

The user behavior that is tracked at process block 222 may include theexamples described above (e.g., following a temperature, changing asetpoint temperature, manually adding or deleting a scheduled setpoint,or the like). Examples of these behaviors are presented by way ofexample in FIG. 15. Continuing with the process 200 of FIG. 13, at theend of each day, the preference function 220 associated with thatparticular concluding day may be decayed (process block 224) togradually reduce the impact of past user behavior in relation to newuser behavior. Decaying the preference function may refer to reducingthe weights assigned to each temperature and time coordinate by acertain amount or percentage. For example, the preference functions foreach day may be decayed each week to half, 75%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%,or 98%, to name a few examples, of their previous state. In someembodiments, the decay may be exponential, but it should be appreciatedthat any form of decay may be used, such as linear, non-linear,logarithmic, quadratic, Gaussian, and the like. For example, if aconstant rate of decay is desired, linear decay may be used, or if aconstant percentage rate of decay is desired, exponential decay may beused.

Decaying the older weights in the preference function may enabledetermining consistent user temperature preferences by identifyingoverlaps of weights when the new user behaviors are mapped to thedecayed preference function, among other things, thereby graduallyfiltering out inconsistent or onetime temperature changes that happenedin the past. Further, using the decay functionality may enable phasingout the old weights over a configurable amount of time (e.g., two weeks,three weeks, a month, two months, and so forth) by increasing the decayfactor based on the age of the data. In some embodiments, the amount ofdecay may be higher earlier on in the life of the electronic device 10and lower after the electronic device 10 has had a chance to “learn” thepreferences of the user. For example, if the current setpoint scheduleis obtained from an external source, the setpoint schedule may beinitially “burned-in” for some period of time (e.g., the first week orthe first few weeks after transferring from a rule-and-exception-basedlearning approach) by adding certain weights to the temperature/timecoordinates associated with a previous setpoint schedule into thepreference function so the enhanced automated control scheduling canlearn the setpoint schedule. Further, there may be a higher “burn-in”decay applied to the weights at the temperature and time coordinates toallow the preference function to change rapidly at first (e.g., thefirst week or the first few weeks after transferring from arule-and-exception-based learning approach), and to change more slowlylater. In some embodiments, if a current setpoint schedule does notexist, a setpoint schedule for the upcoming week may be generated anewand a new preference function started based on that new setpointschedule.

Decaying the preference function 220 of FIG. 16 as in the process block224 of FIG. 13 may produce a preference function 220 shown in FIG. 17.FIG. 17 illustrates the preference function 220 that results afterdecaying the weights of FIG. 16, in accordance with an embodiment. Asillustrated, the weights previously mapped have been reduced by apercentage using decay in the preference function 220. That is, thedecayed weight for the setpoint temperature is now 3 instead of 4 andthe nearby temperature weights are now 1 instead of 2 or 0 instead of 1.

After the preference function for the associated day is decayed (processblock 204), the preference function may also be updated based on theuser interactions with the thermostat 46, or lack thereof, during thecurrent day (process block 226 of FIG. 13). As described above, in thepresent example, according to the plot 208 of user behavior shown inFIG. 15, the user followed the setpoint temperature for a period oftime, went away for a period of time, changed the setpoint temperature,manually added a setpoint, and manually deleted a setpoint. As such,various weights may be added and subtracted from temperatures and timecoordinates where events occurred or did not occur. It should beappreciated that the various adjustments to the preference function mayoccur in any suitable order and are provided in the following order byway of example for ease of discussion.

Before describing the specifics of how the weights of the preferencefunction are added and subtracted based on user behavior, it may beuseful to describe several functions that the process 200 may use to addand subtract weights from temperature and time coordinates in thepreference function. For purposes of explanation, it should be assumedthat the preference function may be expressed as PREF(TOD, TEMP), whereTOD stands for “time of day” and TEMP stands for temperature. Next,assume that the user interacts with the thermostat 46 by, for example,changing the setpoint temperature. Based on the user interaction, an ADDmathematical operation may be triggered to add a weight of magnitude “X”to the preference function at TOD1, TEMP1. In some embodiments, the ADDoperation may be expressed as follows:PREFNEW(TOD,TEMP)=PREF(TOD,TEMP)+(X)ADD(TOD−TOD1,TEMP−TEMP1)

The ADD operation may have a width in both the horizontal (time of day)and vertical (temperature) directions. That is, the ADD operation mayadd a certain weight to the specific temperature and time of dayimplicated in the event and also add an exponentially decayed weightforward in time for a certain duration of time. Based on certainparameters, the weight may not be decayed less than a percentage of itspeak value from the past and, based on hindsight, the horizontal widthof the ADD operation may be stopped when a known event at a subsequenttime is encountered. For example, the decay may be stopped if it isknown that the setpoint temperature changes again at a subsequent timeduring the same day. Vertically, the ADD operation may cause weights tobe added above and below the setpoint temperature to nearby temperatureswithin a threshold amount of degrees from the setpoint temperature. Theweights may decay exponentially as they expand further away from thesetpoint temperature (increase and decrease in temperature).

Likewise, a SUBTRACT mathematical operation may be used to subtractweights from the preference function. For example, if a user turns awayfrom a setpoint temperature, then weights of magnitude “X” may besubtracted from TOD2, TEMP2. The SUBTRACT operation may also include awidth in both the horizontal (time of day) and vertical (temperature)directions, similar to the ADD operation. In some embodiments, theSUBTRACT operation may be expressed as follows:PREFNEW(TOD,TEMP)=PREF(TOD,TEMP)−(X)SUBTRACT(TOD−TOD2,TEMP−TEMP2)

In some embodiments, when adding and subtracting weights based on userinteractions using the above operations, a hierarchy of weightingamounts may be followed. For example, in an embodiment where a highestweight of 10.50 may be assigned to manually added setpoints, for allother user interactions, various percentages of the highest weight maybe added or subtracted. To illustrate, in some embodiments, a low weightof ˜38%, 40%, 42%, or the like, of the highest weight (10.50), whichequals a weight of 4, may be added to followed setpoint temperatures.For setpoint temperature changes, a high weight of ˜59.5%, 60%, 61%, orthe like, of the highest weight, which equals 6.25 may be added to therespective temperature and time coordinates. For the temperature fromwhich the user changed, a low weight of ˜28.5%, 29%, 30%, or the like,of the highest weight, which equals 3, may be subtracted from therespective temperature and time coordinates. To further illustrate therelative differences in percentages of the amount of weights added, insome embodiments, the amount of weight added to followed setpointtemperatures may be 100% to 140% greater than the amount of weightsubtracted from temperatures from which the user changed away. Also, insome embodiments, the amount of weight added to setpoint temperatureschanged to may be 130% to 160% greater than the amount of weight addedto the followed setpoint temperatures. Further, in some embodiments theamount of weight added to manually added setpoints may be 230% to 280%greater than the amount of weight added to followed setpointtemperatures and may be 140% to 180% greater than the amount of weightadded to temperatures to which the user changed.

Returning to the process 200 in FIG. 13, process block 230 may includeadding weight to the temperature and time coordinates around wheretemperatures were followed using the ADD operation, as described above.In some embodiments, if the user follows a setpoint temperature, a lowweight may be added to that temperature over the duration of time thetemperature was followed (horizontally). That is, if a setpointtemperature is not changed away from for a duration of time, thatsetpoint temperature may receive a relatively low weight during thatduration of time, since the user may be communicating a preference forthat setpoint temperature at those times by not changing away from thatsetpoint temperature. In some embodiments, there may be a configurableamount of time that the device 10 has to be following the temperaturebefore the low weight is added. For example, for every 15 minutes thatthe device 10 was following a setpoint temperature, whether the userselected the setpoint via interacting with the device 10 or the setpointtemperature was from the setpoint schedule, a low weight may be appliedto the followed setpoint temperature. In some embodiments, the addedweight may be decayed exponentially forward in time. In addition,weights may be added to temperatures nearby followed temperatures. Theweights added to nearby temperatures may be decayed exponentiallyforward in time (horizontally) and as the temperatures increase ordecrease away from the setpoint temperature (vertically). For example,in some embodiments, the percentage of decay applied to nearbytemperatures may be 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, or any suitable percentage.It should be understood, that in some embodiments, when the user isaway, the preference function may treat those temperature and timecoordinates as if the user were following those temperatures and add aweight to them.

As illustrated in FIG. 18, the preference function 220 is shown withadjusted weights for followed temperatures. According to the user'sbehavior in the graph 208 of FIG. 15, the user followed the setpointtemperature 206 until 6:00 and then went away until nearly 12:00. As aresult, the preference function 220 of FIG. 18 added a low weight (1) tothe setpoint temperature of 80° F. from midnight to 6:00, whichincreased the weight from 3 to 4. Also, low weights were added to nearbytemperatures vertically from the setpoint temperature that was followed.Likewise, since the setpoint temperatures during away may be treated asfollowed setpoint temperatures, the setpoint temperature from 6:00 to12:00 also increased from 3 to 4, and the nearby temperatures wereincreased as well. As should be understood, at 12:00 the user changedthe setpoint temperature, thereby no longer following the setpointtemperature 206 of 80° F., so no weight is added to 80° F. after 12:00.In some embodiments, the decay forward in time may be added to atemperature changed away from. For example, the decay may be set to 85%instead of 92% of the original weight if it is known that the userchanged away from the temperature (e.g., larger decay).

The process 200 in FIG. 13 may include adding weight to temperature andtime coordinates around where the user changed to a temperature (processblock 232). The process 200 may add (e.g., using ADD operation) a highweight to the temperature that is changed to, as it is highly indicativeof the user's temperature preference. Thus, providing a high weight mayenable learning that temperature as a setpoint temperature for futureautomated setpoint schedules. The weight that is added to the selectedtemperature may be decayed exponentially forward in time. For example,the high weight would apply at the time the temperature was selected butwould be a moderate weight in two hours. Also, low weights may be addedvertically to temperatures nearby the selected temperature with anexponential decay. In addition, when the user selects a temperature, theweight assigned to the temperature turned away from at that time may bereduced (e.g., using SUBTRACT operation) to inhibit that temperaturefrom being selected at that time in future automated setpoint schedules.Also, in some embodiments, when the user changes to a temperature, a“banned” area may be applied for a duration of time after the selectedtemperature, and any setpoint that is already scheduled in that bannedarea may be removed from the setpoint schedule temporarily for that day.

For example, FIG. 19 illustrates the preference function 220 thatresults after adjusting the weights when the user changes setpointtemperatures. As previously discussed regarding graph 208 in FIG. 15,the user changed the setpoint temperature from 80° F. to 70° F. at 12:00by interacting with the thermostat 46. As illustrated the selectedtemperature of 70° F. at 12:00 was mapped (e.g., using the ADDoperation) a high weight of 5 and decayed exponentially forward in time(horizontally) until 16:00 when the next known event (manually addedsetpoint) occurred during the day. Also, weights were added to nearbytemperatures vertically away from the selected temperature thatexponentially decay (3, 2, 1). Additionally, the weights for the priorsetpoint temperature of 80° F. was reduced from 3 to 2 and decayedexponentially forward in time. In some embodiments, the reduced weightmay not be decayed forward in time. Returning to process 200 in FIG. 13,process block 236 may include adding (e.g., using the ADD operation)weight to temperature and time coordinates around where the usermanually added a setpoint. If the user manually adds a setpoint, thenthat setpoint is added to the current setpoint schedule and a very highweight is added to that setpoint, also decaying exponentially into thefuture for a desired amount of time (e.g., a few hours). As previouslymentioned, the decay forward in time may be stopped at a time when thenext known event is to occur. Also, the decay may be inhibited by apersistence parameter that prevents the weight from dropping below apercentage (e.g., 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, or any suitable percentage) of itspeak weight. Also, weights may be added to nearby temperaturesvertically away from the manually added setpoint and the weights mayexponentially decay as the temperatures increase and decrease furtheraway from the setpoint.

Process block 238 may include subtracting (e.g., using the SUBTRACToperation) weight from temperature and time coordinates around where theuser manually deleted a setpoint. That is, if the user manually deletesa setpoint, then weight is subtracted from the setpoint temperature andsetpoint time, also decaying forward in time. In some embodiments,nearby temperature and time coordinates may be reduced (e.g., using theSUBTRACT operation) as well. After subtracting weight from the deletedsetpoint, a “banned” area may be created around the temperatures andtimes surrounding the manually deleted setpoint (process block 240). Thebanned area inhibits setpoints from being scheduled inside the bannedarea when generating candidate setpoint schedules until the user selectsa temperature inside the banned area again. In some embodiments, aconfiguration parameter may control the maximum number of deletedsetpoints to remember for banning. In some embodiments, there may be amaximum number of deleted setpoints (e.g., 20) to be remembered forbanning.

FIG. 20 illustrates the preference function 220 that results afteradjusting weights for manually added and deleted setpoints. Aspreviously discussed regarding graph 208 of FIG. 15, the user manuallyadded setpoint 212 (74° F. at 16:00) and deleted setpoint 204 (80° F. at18:00). As a result of the manually added setpoint, a very high weight(7) was added to setpoint temperature 74° F. at 16:00 and decayedexponentially forward in time. In some embodiments, the decay percentagefor manually added setpoints may be set to 90%, 92%, 94%, 96%, or thelike, of the weight at the previous time until the persistenceparameter. It should be noted, that in some embodiments the decayforward in time may occur until the next known event occurs (e.g.,setpoint temperature change, manually added setpoint, etc.), a period oftime has elapsed (e.g., one hour, two hours, the remainder of the day,or the like), or the weight is reduced to a percentage of its peak value(e.g., persistence parameter). Also, weights were added verticallyaround the setpoint temperature that decay exponentially away from thesetpoint temperature as the nearby temperatures increase and decrease.In some embodiments, a configuration parameter may dictate that themanually added setpoint is kept for a certain number of days (e.g., 28)before it can be modified or deleted by the enhanced automated controlscheduling. Moreover, to the extent that any weights are added near tomidnight, such that decaying to a persistence value (e.g., 60% of thetotal of the newly added weight over some period of time of dayhorizontally in the preference function), the next day's preferencefunction may also be updated accordingly by adding an appropriate amountof weight.

For the manually deleted setpoint, weight was subtracted from previoussetpoint temperature 80° F. at 18:00, thus reducing the prior weight of3 to 0. In some embodiments, the nearby temperatures to the deletedsetpoint may be reduced as well. As may be seen, a banned area(represented by the dotted cross 242) is introduced to the preferencefunction. In some embodiments, the banned area may have a horizontalwidth to ban certain setpoints within a small temperature difference anda large time difference and a vertical height to ban setpoints within alarge temperature difference and a small time difference. The size ofthe banned area may be configurable using parameters of the softwareapplication. As mentioned above, the banned area may inhibit setpointsfrom being scheduled inside the banned area when generating candidatesetpoint schedules.

In process 200 in FIG. 13, process block 244 may include addingefficiency bonus weights around efficient temperature and times followedor selected by the user. That is, in some embodiments, after the weightshave been added to or subtracted from the preference function asindicated above, the efficiency bonus weight may be added to alltemperatures the user has ever set. For example, if the user hasselected or followed temperatures between 60 and 70° F., and thethermostat 46 is in cooling mode (higher temperatures are moreefficient), then a weight of 0.1 may be added to 61, 0.2 to 62, 0.3 to63, up to 1.0 for 70. The efficiency bonus may be a weight that is addedto temperatures that are efficient at certain times during the day sothat those temperatures may have a higher chance of being selected assetpoints in a generated candidate setpoint schedule, particularly whenthe user instructed the thermostat 46 to control the environmentalcontrol system more efficiently. Efficiency may refer to the energysavings provided by the HVAC system. For example, during a hot summerday, an indoor ambient temperature that is warmer during the afternoonmay be more energy efficient since the HVAC system does not need to runas long, if at all, to maintain the warmer temperature. In such ascenario, an efficiency bonus weight may be added to that temperature atthe respective times to aid in selecting setpoints. Thus, the device 10may have access to weather forecasts and that information may beaccessible to the preference function when mapping weights totemperatures at each time. Thus, the preference function is not limitedto information in the setpoint schedule for the current time period whenassigning weights. In some embodiments, the preference function may haveaccess to numerous other sources of information (e.g., energyavailability, type of energy, HVAC system efficiency, type ofstructure). The efficiency bonus may also enable reducing the number ofsetpoints by inhibiting frequent setpoint changes to inefficientsetpoint temperatures. It should be appreciated that any range ofweights may be added to the various temperatures as desired for theefficiency bonus. In some embodiments, there may be a configurableparameter related to the number of days (e.g., 7) over which to“phase-in” the efficiency bonus when the thermostat 46 is first“learning” the user's preferences. That is, in some embodiments, theefficiency bonus that is applied to efficient temperatures may besmaller on earlier days and gradually increased over some number of“phase-in” days. Delaying the efficiency bonus may enable establishingthe user's likely preferred temperatures initially without overlyvaluing efficiency.

For example, FIG. 21 illustrates the preference function 220 thatresults after adjusting weights for efficient temperatures selected bythe user or followed by the user, in accordance with an embodiment. Aspreviously discussed regarding graph 208 in FIG. 15, the user followedthe setpoint temperature of 80° F. for a period of time and then changedthe setpoint temperature to 70° F. and added a manual setpoint at 74° F.Thus, the range of temperatures that the user selected or followed isfrom 70° F. to 80° F. Assuming that the thermostat 46 is in coolingmode, higher weights were added to higher setpoint temperatures. Thus,as may be seen, an efficiency bonus weight (1) was added to 80° F. frommidnight to 6:00, thereby increasing the weight from 4 to 5. Lowerweights were added to the other setpoint temperatures that the userselected or followed but, in the depicted example, they did notsubstantially affect the weight previously added (e.g., 0.1 was added tothe weight at setpoint temperature of 70° F. increasing the weight from5 to 5.1). As will be illustrated in more detail below, the efficiencybonus may enable breaking ties between temperature and time coordinatesthat have similarly mapped weights. After the efficiency bonus has beenadded to the preference function 220, the preference function 220 forthe particular day is generated.

FIG. 22 illustrates a graph including example user interactions and anassociated preference function 251 generated based on the user'sbehavior using the process described above, in accordance with anembodiment. In the depicted embodiment, the user interactions occurredon a Tuesday. It should be noted that target temperature and setpointtemperature may be used interchangeably herein. In the graph 250, thesetpoint temperature is represented by line 252 and the ambienttemperature is represented by line 254. As illustrated in the graph 250,the user is occupying the structure in the gray shaded region 256, whichis approximately between 15:00 to 16:30. At roughly 15:30, the userenters a local command 258 (using the thermostat 46, an app, etc.) tothe setpoint temperature from ˜72° F. to ˜74° F. The user follows thissetpoint temperature until about 16:30 when the user leaves the buildingand the setpoint temperature 252 is raised to ˜85° F. because thethermostat 46 may have detected that the user is away or the thermostat46 learned previously that the user leaves the building at this time andentered an auto-away mode. Accordingly, the setpoint temperature 252 isfollowed from 16:30 hours to roughly 19:30 hours when the thermostatchanges the setpoint temperature 252 again from ˜85° F. to ˜82° F. Atthis time, the setpoint temperature 252 falls in line with the ambienttemperature 254.

Based on the setpoint schedule including user interactions representedin the graph 250, the associated preference function 251 may begenerated by adding and subtracting weights around temperature and timecoordinates where events (e.g., user interactions) happened during theday. As previously described, the preference function 251 may becharacterized as a scalar function with two variables, time andtemperature, and a scalar including a range of weights. The preferencefunction may map a weight to each temperature at each time based on thesetpoint schedule and the type of user interaction involved. Forexample, a high weight (e.g., 5 or 6) may be added to a temperature andtime coordinate where the user made a temperature change. Accordingly,the setpoint temperature 260 changed to by the user's local command 258at roughly 15:30 hours is reflected in the preference function 251 witha light color indicating a high weight (e.g., 5 or 6) according to therange of weights 262. Also, lower weights were added to temperatures 264at the times where the setpoint temperature was followed (e.g., notchanged). Thus, a less light color band is used as representing thelower weight (e.g., 3 or 4) for the followed setpoint temperatures ateach time the setpoint temperatures were followed. As may beappreciated, the user did not select the setpoint temperature or add amanual setpoint to the schedule for the setpoints temperatures around˜80-85° F. and, thus, the setpoint temperatures around ˜80-85° F. didnot receive high weights that accompany those types of userinteractions.

In light of the foregoing, it should be understood that a preferencefunction may be generated and maintained for each particular day of theweek. At the end of each day (e.g., at midnight), the respective daypreference function may be updated with the user interactions for theconcluding day to keep each day preference function updated with theuser's latest temperature preferences. Using the generated preferencefunctions for each day of the week, the process 200 in FIG. 13 mayobtain composite preference functions for each day of the week (processblock 270). Process block 270 may further include obtaining a day typepreference function for either weekdays or the weekend (process block272), obtaining a week preference function (process block 274), andblending a percentage of the preference function associated with eachday with a percentage of the respective day type preference function,the week preference function, or some combination thereof, to obtain thecomposite preference function for each day (process block 276). Itshould be understood that the percentages taken of each of the daypreference function, the day type preference function for weekdays, andthe week preference function may be configured as desired. In anembodiments, the percentage of the day preference function is set to50%, the percentage of the day type preference function is set to 50%,and the percentage of the week preference function is set to 0%. Inanother embodiment, the percentage of the day preference function is setto 45%, the percentage of the day type preference function is set to50%, and the percentage of the week preference function is set to 5%.Then, a week composite preference function may be obtained including thecomposite preference functions for each day and candidate setpointschedules may be processed against the week composite preferencefunction to select an automated setpoint schedule for the whole week. Insome embodiments, obtaining the composite preference functions for eachday and the week may occur each night at midnight. The process forobtaining composite preference functions for each day and the week maybe better understood with reference to FIGS. 23-30.

FIG. 23 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea Monday composite preference function 280, in accordance with anembodiment. As illustrated, preference functions for each day of theweek (e.g., Monday 282, Tuesday 284, Wednesday 286, Thursday 288, Friday290, Saturday 292, Sunday 294) may be generated and updated with newuser interactions as described above. To obtain the day type preferencefunction 296 for weekdays (since Monday is a weekday), all of theweekday preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, and 290 may be averagedtogether. In some embodiments, averaging the day preference functionstogether may include summing the weights assigned to each respectivetemperature and time combination across all weekday preference functionsand dividing the summed weights by 5 to obtain an average weightassigned to each temperature and time combination in the day typepreference function 296 for the weekdays. Next, the week preferencefunction 298 may be obtained by averaging all of the day preferencefunctions 282, 284, 286, 288, 290, 292, and 294 together. In someembodiments, averaging all of the day preference functions together mayinclude summing the weights assigned to each respective temperature andtime combination across all day preference functions and dividing thesummed weights by 7 to obtain an average weight assigned to eachtemperature and time in the week preference function 298. Then, toobtain the Monday composite preference function 280, the Mondaypreference function 282 may be multiplied by a configurable percentage(e.g., 50%) and summed with a configurable percentage (e.g., 45%) of theday type preference function 296 for weekdays and a configurablepercentage (e.g., 5%) of the week preference function 298.

In some embodiments, the daily preference function may be weightedequally with the day type preference function (e.g., 50% and 50%), andthe percentage of the week preference function 298 may not be includedin the composite preference function 280 (e.g., the week preferencefunction may form 0% of the composite preference function 298). This maybe true for all of the daily preference functions that may be generated.

FIG. 24 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea Tuesday composite preference function 300, in accordance with anembodiment. As illustrated, preference functions for each day of theweek (e.g., Monday 282, Tuesday 284, Wednesday 286, Thursday 288, Friday290, Saturday 292, Sunday 294) may be generated and updated with newuser interactions as described above. To obtain the day type preferencefunction 296 for weekdays (since Tuesday is a weekday), all of theweekday preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, and 290 may be averagedtogether. Next, the week preference function 298 may be obtained byaveraging all of the day preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, 290,292, and 294 together. Then, to obtain the Tuesday composite preferencefunction 300, the Tuesday preference function 284 may be multiplied by aconfigurable percentage (e.g., 50%) and summed with a configurablepercentage (e.g., 45%) of the day type preference function 296 forweekdays and a configurable percentage (e.g., 5%) of the week preferencefunction 298.

FIG. 25 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea Wednesday composite preference function 302, in accordance with anembodiment. As illustrated, preference functions for each day of theweek (e.g., Monday 282, Tuesday 284, Wednesday 286, Thursday 288, Friday290, Saturday 292, Sunday 294) may be generated and updated with newuser interactions as described above. To obtain the day type preferencefunction 296 for weekdays (since Wednesday is a weekday), all of theweekday preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, and 290 may be averagedtogether. Next, the week preference function 298 may be obtained byaveraging all of the day preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, 290,292, and 294 together. Then, to obtain the Wednesday compositepreference function 302, the Wednesday preference function 286 may bemultiplied by a configurable percentage (e.g., 50%) and summed with aconfigurable percentage (e.g., 45%) of the day type preference function296 for weekdays and a configurable percentage (e.g., 5%) of the weekpreference function 298.

FIG. 26 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea Thursday composite preference function 304, in accordance with anembodiment. As illustrated, preference functions for each day of theweek (e.g., Monday 282, Tuesday 284, Wednesday 286, Thursday 288, Friday290, Saturday 292, Sunday 294) may be generated and updated with newuser interactions as described above. To obtain the day type preferencefunction 296 for weekdays (since Thursday is a weekday), all of theweekday preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, and 290 may be averagedtogether. Next, the week preference function 298 may be obtained byaveraging all of the day preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, 290,292, and 294 together. Then, to obtain the Thursday composite preferencefunction 304, the Thursday preference function 288 may be multiplied bya configurable percentage (e.g., 50%) and summed with a configurablepercentage (e.g., 45%) of the day type preference function 296 forweekdays and a configurable percentage (e.g., 5%) of the week preferencefunction 298.

FIG. 27 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea Friday composite preference function 306, in accordance with anembodiment. As illustrated, preference functions for each day of theweek (e.g., Monday 282, Tuesday 284, Wednesday 286, Thursday 288, Friday290, Saturday 292, Sunday 294) may be generated and updated with newuser interactions as described above. To obtain the day type preferencefunction 296 for weekdays (since Friday is a weekday), all of theweekday preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, and 290 may be averagedtogether. Next, the week preference function 298 may be obtained byaveraging all of the day preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, 290,292, and 294 together. Then, to obtain the Friday composite preferencefunction 306, the Friday preference function 290 may be multiplied by aconfigurable percentage (e.g., 50%) and summed with a configurablepercentage (e.g., 45%) of the day type preference function 310 forweekends and a configurable percentage (e.g., 5%) of the week preferencefunction 298.

FIG. 28 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea Saturday composite preference function 308, in accordance with anembodiment. As illustrated, preference functions for each day of theweek (e.g., Monday 282, Tuesday 284, Wednesday 286, Thursday 288, Friday290, Saturday 292, Sunday 294) may be generated and updated with newuser interactions as described above. To obtain the day type preferencefunction 310 for the weekend (since Sunday is part of the weekend), theSaturday and Sunday preference functions 292 and 294 may be averagedtogether. Next, the week preference function 298 may be obtained byaveraging all of the day preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, 290,292, and 294 together. Then, to obtain the Sunday composite preferencefunction 312, the Sunday preference function 294 may be multiplied by aconfigurable percentage (e.g., 50%) and summed with a configurablepercentage (e.g., 45%) of the day type preference function 310 forweekends and a configurable percentage (e.g., 5%) of the week preferencefunction 298.

FIG. 29 illustrates a blend of day preference functions used to generatea composite preference function for Sunday 312, in accordance with anembodiment. As illustrated, preference functions for each day of theweek (e.g., Monday 282, Tuesday 284, Wednesday 286, Thursday 288, Friday290, Saturday 292, Sunday 294) may be generated and updated with newuser interactions as described above. To obtain the day type preferencefunction 310 for the weekend (since Saturday is part of the weekend),the Saturday and Sunday preference functions 292 and 294 may be averagedtogether. Next, the week preference function 298 may be obtained byaveraging all of the day preference functions 282, 284, 286, 288, 290,292, and 294 together. Then, to obtain the Sunday composite preferencefunction 312, the Sunday preference function 294 may be multiplied by aconfigurable percentage (e.g., 50%) and summed with a configurablepercentage (e.g., 45%) of the day type preference function 310 forweekends and a configurable percentage (e.g., 5%) of the week preferencefunction 298.

FIG. 30 illustrates a week composite preference function 320 thatincludes the composite preference functions for each day of the week(e.g., Monday 280, Tuesday 300, Wednesday 302, Thursday 304, Friday 306,Saturday 308, Sunday 312), in accordance with an embodiment. Asdiscussed above, the enhanced automated control scheduling may select acandidate setpoint schedule for an entire week that best fits the weekcomposite preference function 320 taking into consideration severalconstraints. Thus, the candidate setpoint schedule for the week that isselected may optimize a score output by being processed against thecomposite preference functions for Monday 280, Tuesday 300, Wednesday302, Thursday 304, Friday 306, Saturday 308, and Sunday 312. Asdescribed above and in more detail below, the score output may includesumming the weights of each setpoint temperature at each setpoint timein the candidate setpoint schedules across every day of the week toproduce and applying certain scoring modifications, such as reducing thescore based on the number of setpoints, among other things. Therefore,by using the week composite preference function 320, the enhancedautomated control scheduling enables selecting tailored, automatedsetpoint schedules that holistically consider user preferences acrossindividual days, types of days (weekdays and weekends), and the week asa whole.

Generating a Candidate Automated Device Control Schedule that Best FitsPreference Function(s)

As may be appreciated, continuously updating each day's preferencefunction with new user interactions may cause the weights assigned totemperatures and times in those preference functions to adjust.Consequently, a candidate automated device control schedule that bestfits the one or more preference functions or optimizes a score outputwhen processed against the preference functions may change as thepreference functions change. Thus, at a desired time (e.g., midnightevery night) after the preference function for the concluding day isupdated with that day's user interactions, or lack thereof, the enhancedautomated control scheduling may search for a candidate automated devicecontrol schedule that optimizes a score output when compared against theone or more preference functions. A “candidate automated device controlschedule” may refer to any schedule of control decisions for a devicethat is generated and tested against the preference function. An exampleof a candidate automated device control schedule may include a candidatesetpoint schedule (the example referred to throughout the rest of thissection) used by a thermostat 46 to control an environmental controlsystem. In other embodiments, however, as noted above, the candidateautomated device control schedule may be any suitable automated scheduleto control and electronic device (e.g., a schedule of lighting levelsfor smart lighting in relation to time of day and/or in relation tocontent on a media device, such as a television; or a schedule of deskheights in relation to time of day).

A process 330 suitable for generating and selecting a candidate setpointschedule that optimizes a score output by being processed againstpreference functions is illustrated in FIG. 31. The process 330 mayinclude obtaining the current setpoint schedule for the upcoming week(process block 332), generating candidate setpoint schedules byperforming operations (e.g., varying setpoints) (process block 334),scoring candidate setpoint schedules against preference function(s)(process block 336), adding/subtracting scoring modifications (processblock 338), and selecting the candidate setpoint schedule that optimizesthe score (process block 340). In some embodiments, when scheduling forthe week, the “preference functions” may refer to the compositepreference functions for each day that form the week compositepreference function, as described above. In some embodiments, if onlythe upcoming day is being scheduled, the “preference function” may referto the composite preference function for the particular day beingscheduled.

Assuming that the upcoming week is being scheduled, the current setpointschedule for the upcoming week may be obtained from memory 27 of thethermostat 10 or an external source (e.g., server, database, webservice) (process block 332). If the current setpoint schedule waspreviously generated and stored, candidate setpoint schedules may begenerated by varying the setpoints in that current setpoint schedule(process block 334). For example, operations may be performed on thesetpoints in the current setpoint schedule to generate severalvariations to serve as candidate setpoint schedules. These candidatesetpoint schedules may be tested to determine whether the modificationsincrease the score when processed against the preference functions. Thatis, an initial candidate setpoint schedule may be generated byperforming different operations (e.g., add a setpoint, change asetpoint, delete a setpoint) at different times on the current setpointschedule to improve the score output by processing the candidatesetpoint schedule against the preference functions. Then, the candidatesetpoint schedule with the highest score may be selected and moreoperations may be performed at different times on that candidatesetpoint schedule, which further may be tested, ultimately determining acandidate setpoint schedule with a highest score as against thepreference function.

As previously discussed, the score may include a summation of theweights mapped to all of the setpoint temperatures at the setpoint timesthroughout the preference functions and adding and/or subtractingscoring modifications, as discussed below.

There are certain constraints 350, however, that may be applied whengenerating candidate setpoint schedules, as shown in FIG. 32. In someembodiments, the operations performed adhere to the constraints 350 whengenerating candidate setpoint schedules. A first constraint 352 mayinclude the maximum and minimum time that setpoints can be scheduled. Insome embodiments, the maximum time that setpoints can be scheduledinhibits setpoints from being scheduled later than the latest time theuser has ever interacted with the thermostat 46, and the minimum timethat setpoints can be scheduled inhibits setpoints from being scheduledearlier than the earliest time the user has ever interacted with thethermostat 46. A second constraint 354 may include the maximum andminimum temperatures for setpoints. In some embodiments, the maximumtemperature to which a setpoint can be set inhibits setpointtemperatures from being scheduled that are warmed than the warmesttemperature ever selected by the user, and the minimum temperature towhich a setpoint can be set inhibits setpoint temperatures from beingscheduled that are cooler than the coolest temperature ever selected bythe user. The constraints 352 and 354 provide bounds that are dynamicand focused on the user's preferences. For example, if the user hasnever interacted with the thermostat 46 after 10 PM or before 7 AM,scheduling a setpoint between those times (e.g., at 2 AM) that causesthe HVAC system to turn on or off could startle the user in the middleof the night. Likewise, if the user has never selected a setpointtemperature below 70° F., scheduling a setpoint with a setpointtemperature of 60° F. could make the user uncomfortably cold and causefrustration.

A third constraint 356 may relate to the proximity in time thatsetpoints are scheduled. That is, this constraint 356 may inhibitsetpoints from being scheduled within a configurable amount of time toeach other. In some embodiments, the amount of time may be set to 1hour; however any desirable amount of time may be used. Inhibiting anytwo setpoints from being closer than 1 hour apart in time may encouragefewer setpoint changes and smaller setpoint schedules, thereby enhancingefficiency. A fourth constraint 358 may include the setpoint temperatureincrements. For example, constraint 358 may dictate that all setpointtemperature change are made in increments of 0.2° C.; however, anydesirable increment may be used. A fifth constraint 360 may include thetime interval for when setpoints are scheduled. In some embodiments,this constraint 360 may constrain all setpoints to be scheduled at thetop or bottom of the hour (e.g., no setpoint scheduled at 8:39 AM, butrather at 8:30 AM).

After each candidate setpoint schedule is scored, there may be certainscoring modifications subtracted from the output scores for eachcandidate setpoint schedule (process block 338). FIG. 33 illustratesvarious scoring modifications 370 that may be added or subtracted fromthe score of each candidate setpoint schedule. A first scoringmodification 372 may include the number of setpoints scheduled in thecandidate setpoint schedule. For example, a configurable value may bemultiplied by the number of setpoints scheduled and subtracted from thescore. In some embodiments, if there is less than a threshold number ofsetpoints, a value may be added to the score. This scoring modification372 discourages large numbers of setpoints to encourage smaller setpointschedules.

A second scoring modification 374 may include the regularity ofsetpoints. For example, a higher value may be subtracted for setpointsthat are irregular. In an embodiment, a subtraction may be made for eachtime and temperature combination that there is a setpoint between daysof the same type (e.g., weekdays or the weekend). To illustrate, ifthere is one setpoint scheduled at noon to 72° F. for a weekday, and onesetpoint scheduled at 11:45 to 72° F. for a subsequent weekday, thensubtractions are made for both. However, if both setpoints were at noonon both weekdays, then only one subtraction may be performed. Thisscoring modification 374 may encourage regularity and uniformity of thesetpoint schedule across days of the same type. In some embodiments,there may be a time period (e.g., after 7 days) at which schedulechanges cause scores to be reduced. Also, there may be another timeperiod (e.g., after 14 days) after which schedule changes cause scoresto become more heavily reduced. A third scoring modification 376 mayinclude changes from the current schedule. In some embodiments, thisconstraint 376 may reduce the score when the candidate setpoint scheduleincludes setpoints that differ from the current setpoint schedule. Afourth scoring modification 378 may include subtracting a value from thescore for setpoints near midnight. For example, a value of 50 may besubtracted from a score that has a setpoint near midnight. This scoringmodification 377 may discourage scheduling setpoints near midnight.

Following the constraints, candidate setpoint schedules may continue tobe generated and the scoring process, including adding/subtractingscoring modifications, may be iteratively performed until time runs outor there are no improvements that optimize the score output byprocessing the candidate setpoint schedule through the preferencefunctions. Indeed, in some embodiments, there may be a configurationparameter that sets the time limit for the scoring process (e.g., 3000milliseconds (ms), 4000 ms, 5000 ms, or any suitable time limit), butthe time limit should be less than the thermostat's timeout limit. Thescoring process may approximate the best solution to the schedulingoptimization problem by selecting the candidate setpoint schedule withthe optimal score (process block 340), thereby providing a selectedsetpoint schedule closely fit to the user's temperature preferences tocontrol the environmental control system for the upcoming week. Asmentioned, the discussion of the process 330 above related to finding anoptimal candidate setpoint schedule for the upcoming week, but theprocess 330 may apply to finding an optimal candidate setpoint schedulefor any suitable amount of time, such as the next day, the next fewdays, the next month, and so forth.

FIG. 34 illustrates a schematic diagram 380 for iteratively generatingcandidate setpoint schedules and calculating their scores, in accordancewith an embodiment. The schematic diagram 380 may include obtaining thecurrent setpoint schedule for the upcoming week (block 382), performingoperations on the current setpoint schedule (block 384) to generate anumber of candidate setpoint schedules (data blocks 386, 388, and 390),and calculating the score output by processing each candidate setpointschedule against the preference functions (blocks 392, 394, and 396). Asmentioned above, processing the candidate setpoint schedules against thepreference functions may include processing the candidate setpointschedules against the composite preference functions for each particularday of the week (also referred to as the week composite preferencefunction). More specifically, in process block 384, the operations thatmay be performed on the current setpoint schedule may include adding asetpoint at a different time, changing the time at which a setpoint isset (e.g., shifting setpoints), changing a setpoint temperature of asetpoint, removing a setpoint, and so forth. It should be understood,that the constraints defined above may be adhered to when performing theoperations to generate the candidate setpoint schedules. Performing thevarious operations may result in generating different candidate setpointschedules, such as candidate setpoint schedule A (block 386), candidatesetpoint schedule B (block 388), or any number of candidate setpointschedules n (block 390). In some embodiments, the number of candidatesetpoint schedules to generate may be configurable.

Once the resulting candidate setpoint schedules are generated, theprocess 380 may output a score by processing the candidate setpointschedules against the preference functions. For example, score A (block392) may be output for setpoint candidate schedule A 386 by processingit against the preference functions, score B (block 394) may be outputfor candidate setpoint schedule B 388 by processing it against thepreference functions, and so forth for n number of candidate setpointschedule scores (e.g., score n (block 396)). Also, the scores may beincreased or decreased by the scoring modifications described above.Then, in block 398, the candidate setpoint schedule that produced thehighest score (data block 400) may be selected. It should be noted thatthere may be a score (e.g., −10000, −15000, or the like) that isassigned to the lowest scoring candidate setpoint schedule to remove itfrom consideration. It should also be noted that, in some embodiments,there may be a configurable divisor (e.g., 100, 150, 200, 250, or thelike) that is used to fit the maximum score into a desired type ofvalue. The process 380 may determine whether the time limit forsearching has been met (decision block 402). If not, the highest scoringcandidate setpoint schedule may be run through the process 380 again byperforming operations 384 on it to generate new candidate setpointschedules to optimize the score, and so forth. If the time limit hasbeen met or there are no more improvements available to optimize thescore, then the highest scoring candidate setpoint schedule may be usedto control the environmental control system.

Describing an example of the scoring process may be beneficial. As such,FIG. 35 illustrates a current setpoint schedule 410 for an upcoming day,in accordance with an embodiment. It should be noted that, in someembodiments, the current setpoint schedule may represent the upcomingweek, and the current setpoint schedule 410 for the upcoming day is usedfor explanatory purposes. In the current setpoint schedule 410, there isone setpoint 412 scheduled for 74° F. throughout the entire day. Thus,the setpoint temperature 414 remains at 74° F. throughout the day.

FIG. 36 illustrates a preference function 420 for the upcoming day usedto process candidate setpoint schedules generated based on the setpointschedule 410 of FIG. 35, in accordance with an embodiment. Asillustrated, the preference function 420 includes high weights mappedaround 82° F. from midnight to 6:00, high weight distribution mappedaround 74° F. from 6:00 to 16:00, and high weight distribution around82° F. from 16:00 to the following midnight. The preference function 420from FIG. 36 is represented in matrix form 430 in FIGS. 37-39, whichillustrate how the selection of a candidate setpoint schedule is made byselecting an optimal score output by processing different candidatesetpoint schedules 432, 434, and 436 against the preference function430. In the depicted embodiments, the preference function is representedas a 12 row by 12 column matrix including a rectangular array of weightsin each element of the array. Each element represents a 2.5° F.temperature range and a 2 hour time interval. For example, element 438in FIG. 37 represents the temperature range from 60° F. to 62.5° F. andthe time interval from 0 to 2:00 hours. It should be understood that thetemperature ranges and time intervals represented by the elements arefor illustration purposes only and, in some embodiments, the preferencefunction may assign a weight to any suitable temperature range or timeinterval, such every minute, 15 minutes, 30 minutes, and so forth. Itshould be noted that the candidate setpoint schedule 432 is the currentsetpoint schedule for the upcoming day, and candidate setpointschedules, 434, and 436 may have been generated during the optimizationprocess by varying setpoints in the current setpoint schedule for theupcoming day while adhering to the constraints discussed above.

Beginning with FIG. 37, the candidate setpoint schedule 432 wasgenerated by based on the current setpoint schedule for the upcoming dayand includes a single setpoint 440. The setpoint temperature coverselements with assigned weights of 2, 2, 2, 2, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 6, 4,and 1. The score output by processing the candidate setpoint schedule432 against the preference function 430 is the summation of all of therespective weights assigned at the setpoint temperatures and setpointtimes. Thus, the score output by comparing candidate setpoint schedule432 to the preference function 430 is 54. However, in some embodiments,a scoring modification may increase or decrease the score of thecandidate setpoint schedule 432. In the depicted embodiment, a scoringmodification may include reducing the score based on the number ofsetpoints in the candidate setpoint schedule 432 by any suitable value,such as −1. The candidate setpoint schedule 432 includes only onesetpoint so a scoring modification of −1 may reduce the score to 53.

In FIG. 38, the candidate setpoint schedule 434 was generated byselecting setpoints 442, 444, 446, 448, 450, and 452 with the highestpossible weight at any given time interval. The candidate setpointschedule 434 adheres to the constraint of inhibiting setpoints frombeing scheduled within an hour of each other because all of thesetpoints are scheduled at least 2 hours apart. As depicted, thesetpoints cover elements with assigned weights of 7, 7, 7, 6, 7, 7, 7,7, 7, 7, 7, and 7. Thus, when the candidate setpoint schedule 434 isprocessed against the preference function 430, a score of 83 is output,which is higher than the score output by processing candidate setpointschedule 432 in FIG. 37, which was 54. There are 6 setpoints incandidate setpoint schedule 434 and, thus, a modification of −6 reducesthe score of candidate setpoint schedule 434 from 83 to 77.

Last, in FIG. 39, the candidate setpoint schedule 436 was generated byselecting setpoints 454, 456, and 458 with the highest possible weightat any given time interval. For example, setpoint 454 covers fourelements from 80-82.5° F. from 00:00 to 8:00 hours, which are assignedweights of 7, 7, 7, and 6. Setpoint 456 covers five elements from72.5-75° F. from 8:00 to 18:00 hours, which are assigned weights of 7,7, 7, 7, and 7. Last, setpoint 458 covers three elements from 80-82.5°F. from 18:00 to 00:00 hours, which are assigned weights of 7, 7, and 7.The score output by processing the candidate setpoint schedule 436against the preference function 430 equals a total of 83, which is thesame score output by candidate setpoint schedule 434 in FIG. 38pre-modification. Here, the candidate setpoint schedule 436 included 3setpoints which is multiplied by −1 to obtain a scoring modification of−3. The modification may then be added to the score, resulting in ascore of 80. As should be noticed, even though both candidate setpointschedules 434 and 436 output the same raw score of 83, the scoringmodification broke the tie by reducing the score of candidate setpointschedule 434 based on its greater number of setpoints. As a result,candidate setpoint schedule 436 has the optimized score and would beselected out of all three candidate setpoint schedules 432, 434, and436. For example, FIG. 40 illustrates the selected setpoint schedule 436for the upcoming day that includes the three setpoints 454, 456, and458. The selected setpoint schedule 436 may be applied to control theenvironmental control system for the upcoming day accordingly.

To further illustrate the efficiency bonus weight, FIG. 41 depicts acomparison of initial setpoint schedules 470 and resulting setpointschedules 472 selected after being processed through an associatedpreference function 474 including an efficiency bonus, in accordancewith an embodiment. Both setpoint schedules 470 and 472 represent a weekof setpoint schedules for each day of the week in an office building.Also, the setpoint schedules 470 and 472 were based on the same userinteractions over the same time period.

As may be seen in the setpoint schedules 470, during working hours inthe weekday schedules 476, there are numerous setpoints throughout theday, which may be inefficient. Taking the setpoint schedule 478 forMonday, a first setpoint 480 is set to −77° F. until 10:00 and then thesetpoint changes to 65° F. until about 11:30. At 11:30, the setpointchanges to 75° F. until 14:00, where the setpoint changes to 70° F. Thesetpoint proceeds to be changed three more times throughout the rest ofthe day. With a total of six setpoint changes, some of which arerelatively close to one another, the setpoint schedule 478 runs theenvironmental control system inefficiently. The setpoint schedules forthe other weekdays are identical and not highly efficient. The weekendschedules 482, for when the user is not present in the building, onlyinclude one setpoint change each.

In contrast, the weekday schedules 484 of the resulting setpointschedules 472 only include two setpoint changes. The first setpointchange occurs at 11:45 and lowers the setpoint from ˜77° F. to 75° F.and the second setpoint change occurs at 16:00 and raises the setpointback to ˜77° F. Further, the weekend setpoint schedules 486 have zerosetpoint changes. Thus, the setpoint schedules 472 selected are muchmore efficient and smaller than initial setpoint schedules 470.

The preference function 474 shows the weights assigned to eachtemperature at each time. As previously discussed, a temperature changemade by the user may be assigned a high weight (e.g., 5-7) andrepresented by a very light color. Thus, each setpoint temperaturechange by the user is depicted in the preference function with the avery light color. For example, setpoint 488 is shown where the userchanged the setpoint temperature to 65° F. with a high weight, setpoint490 is shown where the user changed the setpoint temperature to 70° F.with a high weight, and setpoint 492 is shown where the user changed thesetpoint temperature to ˜72° F. with a high weight. Although, eachsetpoint 488, 490, and 492 received high weights, none were used in theselected weekday setpoint schedules 484. This may have been due to theefficiency bonus weight. As previously described, higher efficiencybonus weights are added to more efficient temperatures. Thus, higherefficiency bonus weights were added to the temperatures at the timesduring the setpoints 488, 490, and 492 that were more efficient. As maybe seen, there are other temperatures at the same times as setpoints488, 490, and 492 that receive similar weights (e.g., same color). Thus,the efficiency bonus weight may act as a “tiebreaker” where twotemperatures are similarly weighted by selecting the one that is moreefficient. Selecting the setpoints to apply in this way may inhibitonetime setpoint changes from being learned and inhibit numeroussetpoints in a selected setpoint schedule. As such, the enhancedautomated scheduling may inhibit numerous setpoints changes from beingmade very close in time to one another as was done in the initialsetpoint schedules 270.

This written description uses examples to disclose the techniques,including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in theart to practice the techniques, including making and using any devicesor systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scopeof the disclosure is defined by the claims, and may include otherexamples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples areintended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structuralelements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, orif they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantialdifferences from the literal language of the claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An electronic device comprising: storagecontaining: processor-executable instructions; a plurality of preferencefunctions, each of which maps weights indicating likely relative userpreferences for a range of possible setpoint temperatures for a range oftimes of day for a particular day of the week; and a current setpointschedule of temperature setpoints over time; and a processor configuredto execute the instructions, wherein the instructions are configured tocause the processor to control an environmental control system based atleast in part on the current setpoint schedule, wherein the instructionsare configured to cause the processor to determine the current setpointschedule by: detecting user behavior occurring on a first day of theweek that indicates satisfaction or dissatisfaction with setpointtemperatures of the environmental control system in relation to time ofday for the first day of the week; updating one of the plurality ofpreference functions that corresponds to the first day of the week basedat least in part on the detected user behavior; blending the weights ofthe preference function corresponding to the first day of the week withthe weights of other of the plurality of preference functions to obtaina first composite preference function; and determining the currentsetpoint schedule at least partly by comparing a plurality of candidatesetpoint schedules against the weights of the first composite preferencefunction and selecting the candidate setpoint schedule that has ahighest score against the weights of the first composite preferencefunction or has a highest score after one or more scoring modifications,or both.
 2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the plurality ofpreference functions contained in the storage comprise a first set ofpreference functions associated with a first mode of the environmentalcontrol system and a second set of preference functions associated witha second mode of the environmental control system.
 3. The electronicdevice of claim 2, wherein the first mode comprises a cooling mode andthe second mode comprises a heating mode.
 4. The electronic device ofclaim 1, wherein the instructions cause the processor to determine thecurrent setpoint schedule by determining a week composite preferencefunction by: blending the weights of the preference functioncorresponding to a second day of the week with the weights of other ofthe plurality of preference functions to obtain a second compositepreference function; blending the weights of the preference functioncorresponding to a third day of the week with the weights of other ofthe plurality of preference functions to obtain a third compositepreference function; blending the weights of the preference functioncorresponding to a fourth day of the week with the weights of other ofthe plurality of preference functions to obtain a fourth compositepreference function; blending the weights of the preference functioncorresponding to a fifth day of the week with the weights of other ofthe plurality of preference functions to obtain a fifth compositepreference function; blending the weights of the preference functioncorresponding to a sixth day of the week with the weights of other ofthe plurality of preference functions to obtain a sixth compositepreference function; blending the weights of the preference functioncorresponding to a seventh day of the week with the weights of other ofthe plurality of preference functions to obtain a seventh compositepreference function; and appending the second composite preferencefunction to the first composite preference function, appending the thirdcomposite preference function to the second composite preferencefunction, appending the fourth composite preference function to thethird composite preference function, appending the fifth compositepreference function to the fourth composite preference function,appending the sixth composite preference function to the fifth compositepreference function, and appending the seventh composite preferencefunction to the sixth composite preference function to obtain the weekcomposite preference function; wherein the current setpoint schedule isdetermined at least partly by comparing the plurality of candidatesetpoint schedules against the weights of the week composite preferencefunction and selecting the candidate setpoint schedule that has thehighest score against the weights of the week composite preferencefunction or has the highest score after one or more scoringmodifications, or both.
 5. The electronic device of claim 4, wherein theinstructions cause the processor to determine the current setpointschedule by determining the week composite preference function by:blending the weights of the preference function corresponding to thefirst day of the week, wherein the first day of the week corresponds toMonday, with an average of the weights of all of the plurality ofpreference functions that correspond to weekdays to obtain the firstcomposite preference function; blending the weights of the preferencefunction corresponding to the second day of the week, wherein the secondday of the week corresponds to Tuesday, with an average of the weightsof all of the plurality of preference functions that correspond toweekdays to obtain the second composite preference function; blendingthe weights of the preference function corresponding to the third day ofthe week, wherein the third day of the week corresponds to Wednesday,with an average of the weights of all of the plurality of preferencefunctions that correspond to weekdays to obtain the third compositepreference function; blending the weights of the preference functioncorresponding to the fourth day of the week, wherein the fourth day ofthe week corresponds to Thursday, with an average of the weights of allof the plurality of preference functions that correspond to weekdays toobtain the fourth composite preference function; blending the weights ofthe preference function corresponding to the fifth day of the week,wherein the fifth day of the week corresponds to Friday, with an averageof the weights of all of the plurality of preference functions thatcorrespond to weekdays to obtain the first composite preferencefunction; blending the weights of the preference function correspondingto the sixth day of the week, wherein the sixth day of the weekcorresponds to Saturday, with an average of the weights of all of theplurality of preference functions that correspond to weekend days toobtain the sixth composite preference function; and blending the weightsof the preference function corresponding to the seventh day of the week,wherein the seventh day of the week corresponds to Sunday, with anaverage of the weights of all of the plurality of preference functionsthat correspond to weekend days to obtain the seventh compositepreference function.
 6. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein thepreference function that corresponds to the first day of the week isdecayed across all of the weights of the preference function thatcorresponds to the first day of the week by a percentage before beingupdated based at least in part on the detected user behavior.
 7. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the current setpoint schedulecomprises a setpoint schedule for at least the next day.
 8. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the current setpoint schedulecomprises a setpoint schedule for at least the next week.
 9. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured tocause the processor to determine the current setpoint schedule at leastonce each day.
 10. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein theinstructions are configured to cause the processor to determine thecurrent setpoint schedule only when a threshold amount of user behaviorhas been detected.
 11. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein theinstructions are configured to cause the processor to determine thecurrent setpoint schedule only when the processor has controlled theenvironmental control system in a first mode for at least a firstthreshold amount of time or has controlled the environmental controlsystem in a second mode for a second threshold amount of time.
 12. Theelectronic device of claim 11, wherein the first threshold amount oftime comprises more than 90% of the previous day.
 13. An electronicdevice comprising: storage containing: processor-executableinstructions; a preference function that maps weights indicating likelyrelative user preferences for a range of possible setpoint temperaturesfor a range of times of day; and a current setpoint schedule oftemperature setpoints over time; and a processor configured to executethe instructions, wherein the instructions are configured to cause theprocessor to control an environmental control system based at least inpart on the current setpoint schedule, wherein the instructions areconfigured to cause the processor to determine the current setpointschedule based on the preference function by: detecting user behaviorthat indicates satisfaction or dissatisfaction with setpointtemperatures of the environmental control system in relation to time ofday; updating the preference function based on the detected userbehavior: according to a first method for an initial period of timebeginning when the processor first determined the current setpointschedule based on the preference function; and according to a secondmethod for a subsequent period of time after the initial period of time;wherein the first method prioritizes new behavior over older behaviormore than the second method; determining the current setpoint scheduleat least partly by comparing a plurality of candidate setpoint schedulesagainst the weights of the preference function and selecting thecandidate setpoint schedule that has a highest score against the weightsof the preference function or has a highest score after one or morescoring modifications, or both.
 14. The electronic device of claim 13,wherein the first method of updating the preference function comprisesadding a first weight based on tracked behavior that indicatessatisfaction and the second method of updating the preference functioncomprises adding a second weight based on tracked behavior thatindicates satisfaction, wherein the first weight is greater than thesecond weight.
 15. The electronic device of claim 13, wherein the firstmethod of updating the preference function comprises decaying all of theweights of the preference function to a greater degree than the secondmethod before otherwise adjusting the preference function.
 16. Theelectronic device of claim 13, wherein the first method of updating thepreference function comprises subtracting a first weight based ontracked behavior that indicates dissatisfaction and the second method ofupdating the preference function comprises subtracting a second weightbased on tracked behavior that indicates dissatisfaction, wherein thefirst weight is greater than the second weight.
 17. A method comprising:using a first electronic device or a second electronic device to detectuser behavior that indicates satisfaction or dissatisfaction with devicesettings of the first electronic device having a range of possiblevalues in relation to a variable; based at least in part on the detecteduser behavior, using the first electronic device or the secondelectronic device to determine a preference function that maps weightsindicating likely user preferences for the range of possible values ofthe device setting in relation to a range of values of the variable;using the first electronic device or the second electronic device togenerate a first automated device control schedule configured to controlthe first electronic device in relation to the variable by: determininga plurality of candidate automated device control schedules; comparingeach of the plurality of candidate automated device control schedules tothe preference function to obtain a first score, wherein the candidateautomated device control schedule that best fits the weights of thepreference function has the highest first score; modifying or notmodifying the first score of each of the plurality of candidateautomated device control schedules to obtain a second score; andselecting one of the plurality of candidate automated device controlschedules with the highest second score to be the first automated devicecontrol schedule; and controlling the first electronic device accordingto the first automated device control schedule.
 18. The method of claim17, wherein the first electronic device comprises a thermostat, thedevice setting comprises a setpoint temperature, and the variablecomprises a time of day.
 19. The method of claim 17, wherein the firstelectronic device comprises a remotely controlled light, the devicesetting comprises a lighting level or hue, and the variable comprises atime of day.
 20. The method of claim 17, wherein the first electronicdevice comprises a remotely controlled light, the device settingcomprises a lighting level or hue, and the variable comprises a type ofcontent being played on a media device near the remotely controlledlight.
 21. The method of claim 17, wherein the first electronic devicecomprises a variable-height desk, the device setting comprises a deskheight, and the variable comprises a time of day.
 22. The method ofclaim 17, wherein the preference function comprises a scalar functionlinking the weights indicating likely user preferences to the range ofpossible values of the device settings and the range of values of thevariable.
 23. An electronic device comprising: storage containing:processor-executable instructions; and a preference function that mapsweights indicating likely user preferences for the range of possiblevalues of a device setting in relation to a range of values of avariable; and a current automated device control schedule configured tocontrol the device setting of the electronic device in relation to thevariable; and a processor configured to execute the instructions,wherein the instructions are configured to cause the processor todetermine the current automated device control schedule based on thepreference function by: detecting user behavior that indicatessatisfaction or dissatisfaction with one or more values of the devicesetting in relation to the variable; updating the preference functionbased on the detected user behavior; and determining the currentautomated device control schedule at least partly by comparing aplurality of candidate device control schedules against the weights ofthe preference function and selecting the candidate automated devicecontrol schedule that has a highest score against the weights of thepreference function or has a highest score after one or more scoringmodifications, or both.
 24. The electronic device of claim 23, whereinthe electronic device comprises a component of a smart lighting system,the device setting comprises a lighting level, and the variablecomprises a time of day.
 25. The electronic device of claim 23, whereinthe variable comprises a type of content being played on a media-playingdevice.
 26. The electronic device of claim 23, wherein the electronicdevice comprises a variable-height desk, the device setting comprises adesk height, and the variable comprises a time of day.